


A Black Night

by XxMaskedPuppetxX



Category: Code Geass
Genre: AU, Abuse, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - College/University, Corruption, D.I.D., Detectives, F/M, M/M, Multi, Murder, Roommates, Serial Killers, split personality
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-26
Updated: 2019-07-24
Packaged: 2019-10-16 08:18:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 15
Words: 64,164
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17546015
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/XxMaskedPuppetxX/pseuds/XxMaskedPuppetxX
Summary: Suzaku, a detective with a serious drive and dedication to his job, is given a case that attracts his attention. There has been a mass of murders going around and the criminal always manages to get away without leaving a trace of DNA or hint of who it could be. Little does he know that the killer is a lot closer to him than he ever expected him to be.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Special Thanks to my best friend Ayame for helping me with this.

The rain poured over the city, the sky a dingy gray with small patches of black that seemed to peek through the blanket of mush. A young male was walking with an umbrella, making his way home. Normally he never liked walking in the rain, it reminded him too much of crying, making the connection of him when he was a younger kid. Turning the corner, he ran into a young woman, causing her to fall to the ground. "Oh, I'm so sorry, here let me help you." Reaching his hand out, he helped her up, giving her an apologetic smile before reaching into his pocket and pulling out a cloth he always carried with him in case of emergencies. 

"It's quite alright, I wasn't looking where I was going." Lelouch noticed the blush tinting her cheeks, it was common for him every time he interacted with a woman. "Maybe we should get out of the rain, I think there should be one final train coming before they're done for the day," he said, holding the umbrella over her. She nodded and followed him to the nearest subway entrance. Their footsteps echoed down the hall, catching sight that they were the only ones down there. He approached a train schedule and smiled. "We're in luck, there's one final one and it should be arriving soon." 

He turned to see her looking at him, her blush getting brighter. "Is something wrong?" 

"Eh....nothing it's just....thank you...for helping me," she stammered, looking down at her feet. Lelouch chuckled before rubbing his head. 

"It's no problem really."

"Um...here let me give you my card....that way I can repay you." He took the card from her, reading her name. 

"Shirley...." Then it hit him, a big wave of pain causing him to drop the card to the ground. 

"Are you okay?" 

Lelouch groaned, leaning against the wall. "Yeah...my head just hurts...." 

Slowly, he moved towards the bathroom, asking if she'd alert him if the train arrived. Standing over the sink, he stared into his reflection, waiting for it to come. Closing his eyes, he released a ragged breath, opening them up once again, his eyes a different color and his hair seemed to tint a bit. "It's my time to play," he said out loud, his voice low and seemingly demonic. Opening up his bag, he took out a pair of gloves and slipped a knife into his coat pocket. Making his way out, Shirley turned to face him, her face questioning if he felt better. 

"Are you alright? Oh, I never did get your name...." 

"It's Zero." Shirley blinked in surprise, wondering if he was being serious. 

"That's a strange name...." Zero smiled and shrugged his shoulders. 

"I know, but that's the last name you'll ever hear," he said before lunging forward and burying the blade deep into her abdominal. The noise she made was a mix between a gasp and a gurgled gag, as blood was pushed out of her mouth as she stumbled back when Zero retracted the blade. He sighed as she continued to move away from him, trying to make distance so she could be able to escape. 

"Oh come now, you're only going to make this harder on yourself," he said with a laugh. She was shivering, holding her hand to cover the wound but blood was spilling fast. Looking at his watch, he knew the train was going to get there soon so he'd have to finish her soon. "Darling, if we don't make this quick, then we'll miss our train," he commented, slowly walking closer to her. Shirley darted to the side, attempting to make an escape but her arm was caught in his Zero's hard hold and he yanked her towards him before plunging the blade into her throat.

Now that was a gurgle, the blood began to pour everywhere, spilling on his clothes. She collapsed to the ground, blood pooling around her as she tried to move but the pain made it too much for her to accomplish. Tears of pain and fear were falling from her eyes as she stared up at the cynical male. Leaning next to her, he leveled the blade over her chest, smiling down at her. "Bye bye, Shirley. It was nice meeting you." With that, he plunged it deep, watching the blood flow out and the life draining from those pretty brown eyes she had. 

Zero sighed before continuing with cutting up her clothes so her chest and stomach area were exposed to him. With the blade, he cut a precise line over the fair skin to the point where he could pull the skin back and began the same operation with the muscles until her internal organs were exposed. He'd always wanted to do this but he would have to make it quick. Cutting up the long intestines he formed the letter R, with the ending connected to her body. Once he was done, he removed thin waxed paper which he stepped on and began to shed his clothes, dressing into an extra pair he'd carried in his bag. 

Once he was clean, he wrapped plastic around his feet heading over to the trashcan and tossing everything he'd used from his clothes down to the gloves, wax paper and even his shoes. "Hmm, let's leave something to help draw attention," he said aloud, emptying a small canteen of liquor he carried into the trashcan before lighting a match and watching it burn. A cynical laugh escaped him as he walked away, pulling out his umbrella and headed back out into the pouring rain.

* * *

The rain was pouring heavily upon the city. As the civilians quickly disbursed from the streets, flashing lights and sirens replaced them. Arriving in his own car Suzaku, turned off the small signal atop of the roof. His green eyes surveyed the area carefully before making his way over to the men in blue. Giving one last look to the skies above, he could see a glimmer of light peeking through the clouds. 

It had stormed heavily last night, as if to weep for the loss taken. Being lead to the bottom of the subway platform, he looked over the body of the latest victim on the case. The twenty-six year old was not some rookie cop on vice, nor was he the sergeant for a leading team. Suzaku was a detective, and a damn good one if he did say so himself. It had been his dream to solve crimes for as long as he could remember. He had plenty of memories of playing murder-mystery games with his beloved younger "brother". It came at a great shock to him where he first joined the force, but he had gained enough experience over the years to earn his own shield. 

Now here he was staring at the mutilated corpse of a young lady in an old subway train station. "The victim is white female, between late teens to early twenties, with long orange hair. Her brown eyes are open fully gazing upward, possibly staring at the killer. She has two stab wounds, one to the throat and one to the chest. Her top is sliced open (probably from a hunting knife of some sort) exposing the breasts and abdomen; that of which has been cut open, exposing numerous organs, excluding the small intestines which have been pulled nearly fully out and laid upon the ground to form what appears to be the letter 'R'." he observed while his partner wrote down notes. Kneeling closer to the body, he examined the wounds more closely before pulling away.  
"It appears that she was attacked near the men's restroom, before putting up a fight and coming to an end at this point. Judging from the blood trail, of course." his colleague imputed while walking over to the starter point for emphasis. 

"We’ll have to wait for the blood work to come back before we can conclude anything." Suzaku commented as he walked away from the body to stand near his partner as well. "From this distance it gives us a possible clue to the killer's gender." he noted while sending a team of forensics to check out the public facilities. There wasn't much he could do at that point for the night. He would have to wait for the formal reports on the dead girl's identity, cause of death or anything else before calling anything a certainty.  
After leaving his notes back at the station, the auburn haired man made his way back to his apartment, beating the morning traffic. Once inside, the detective made his way over to his bedroom while coming across sight of the living room. The television was on with a news report of the crime scene he had just left behind. Sprawled across the leather couch was his young roommate, dozed off in a deep sleep. Sighing slightly, Suzaku turned off the electronic box before nudging the other's shoulder softly. "Wake up, buddy, you know you can't sleep here. It'll give you back problems" he whispered as he rubbed the back of his neck. He had pulled an all-nighter working over this case before receiving a call about the recently found body.

* * *

Lelouch didn't know when he'd turned back to normal, nor did he remember making it back to the apartment but when he'd come to he was greeted with the TV, guessing that Zero had turned it on to see how long it would take them to discover the next body. And before he knew it, he passed out on the sofa, since Zero normally took a lot out of him. His dreams consisted of nothing but darkness and there were times he would come face to face with Zero, even most times it felt like even his dreams were being controlled by the other male.

He sat up with a start when he was awakened by his roommate. He yawned before looking up to face Suzaku. "How long was I asleep," he asked groggily, rubbing his eyes. Glancing at the clock, he couldn't really guess how long since he didn't recall even getting home, at least not sanity wise. As he took in the surroundings, he sat up stretching out before actually getting up this time. "Did you just get in? You look really tired," he commented releasing another yawn. 

The clock read 6 a.m. but luckily today he wasn't going to be needed for work. Walking into the kitchen, he opened up a cabinet and took out a container of pills. He passed them off for vitamins but in actuality they were his prescribed pills that his parents had paid off so that way no one would know their son had an imperfection. He filled a cup with water before swallowing them down, putting the container away. 

"I guess since I'm awake now I'll head out to buy breakfast, want anything," he called walking over to the door to put his shoes on, finding they'd been kicked at the entrance. Lelouch reached out for his bag when his hand stopped midair. "I suggest you take another back," he heard the voice comment. He sighed before picking up the bag before walking over to his room to take out his wallet before tossing it in the closet and taking a different bag out.

When he came back out, he followed the other male into his room. "Is that a yes or no for wanting something for breakfast cuz once I'm out the door I don't want you texting or calling saying you changed your mind and actually want food," he said, yawning again as he tried to get all the sleepiness out of him as he possibly could.

* * *

Chuckling at the drowsiness of his roommate, Suzaku looked over to the window to jester to the rising sun. "Not sure, was it raining when you got in? Well than again that shower just finished a few minutes ago, so I'm not sure if that helps." he joked before lifting himself up from his crouched position in front of the younger man. Following the other's example, the detective release a rather long yawn before rubbing his neck again. Stretching his arms far into the air, he felt the tension released enough for the soreness of the night to wither away. 

"Pulled another all-nighter." he admitted while looking at his friend sheepishly. "This case is really getting to me. So many victims with little in common; only the display of the corpse bonds them together. No doubt in my mind that it's a serial killer, but you know how pig-headed my chief can be about drawing those conclusions." Reaching out to ruffle the messy locks of the dark haired man lightly, he then turned around to walk to his bedroom. 

Opening the dark oak door he peered into the darkness before glancing back over his shoulder to give Lelouch another reassuring smile. "Don't worry though, I'll catch this son of a bitch soon. No way is he going to lay a hand on you or anyone else for that matter." Entering the bedchamber, the brunette allowed himself to collapse onto the pile of blankets on his bed. His sheets have long since been kicked off, revealing the mattress beneath. Pillows laid askew in opposite corners as the comforter hanged over the far post. Just another sign of his occupation, never to be made into a perfect bedspread since the first night they were laid.  
Dozing off amongst the mess of his bed, Suzaku disregarded the first call for breakfast. As he felt his muscles relax was when he noticed the loud question of his "younger brother". His green eyes opened slightly to look back up to the person in the doorway. "I was planning on hitting the hay, but if you happen to go by Micky-Ds than can you grab me one of those breakfast sandwiches?" he asked hopefully, realizing the emptiness of his stomach. Used to eating fast food made the detective wonder when was the last time his indulged in a proper morning meal. How lucky was he to have a caring and thoughtful roommate as Lelouch. 

After the younger man had left, Suzaku reclined back into his bed hoping to catch a quick nap before the meal. Slumming off, he found himself back at the newest crime scene. There was the blood of the young woman recently slain but no body to be found. Walking towards the tunnel of the sub rail, he saw her up ahead of him. Her soft brown eyes held no life yet she still managed to smile softly at the detective. The gash in her throat continued to dribble blood as she giggled at his confusion. "Who did it?" he questioned as she seemed to stand completely frozen in time. It was then that he noticed the shadowy figure behind her. The ginger opened her mouth to reply, but no words came out. "The dead don't talk." a voice chanted softly as red eyes from the shadow opened fully. 

Awaking from the nightmare, Suzaku stared up to the ceiling in a daze. His eyes focused and unfocused on the many patterned of the tiles above while the clock in the living room ticked off the seconds. He didn't know how long he had been asleep, but knew that the sun was high up in the sky by then. Had Lelouch returned yet or was he still out? He didn't know and felt he had no energy to check either. Closing his eyes for a second, he thought back to the dream and the possible meaning it could have had. Blinking a few slow times, he found himself slowly drifting back to sleep.

* * *

Lelouch nodded at the comment of getting a breakfast sandwich from Mickey-D's since that was the only thing that seemed to be open this early in the morning. Walking out the front door, he thought back to what he'd said earlier. 'Don't worry, I'll catch that son of a bitch...' Releasing a sigh, he wondered which case he was referring to, after all his other persona wasn't exactly the only one committing crimes in this city. He lifted the flaps of his jacket, feeling the leftover chill of the rain that had passed.

T.V's flashed in an electronics store, making him stop to see what exactly they were reporting. No expression showed on his face when he saw the cops doing examinations of the dead body found in the subway station. The flashing lights and yellow caution tapes blocking off all entrances stood out more than the woman's voice reporting it. He could hear the laughter in his head as he turned away and continued walking. After all of this, he'd let go of the queasiness he felt when he was forced to face the handiwork on the news every day.

Arriving at the fast food joint, he walked through the doors glancing at the menu to contemplate what he wanted to eat as well. Lelouch felt stares on him, causing him to stare straight ahead at the worker at the register. There was no denying he was staring especially at the sudden blush that formed on his cheeks when he had looked down to face him. 'Well, well isn't he the cute one.' Lelouch moved closer, placing his hands on the counter. "Hi, may I have two breakfast sandwiches to go?" He couldn't contain the smile at the way the flushed male was fumbling with the register. "That will be 3.84," he stuttered after a while. 

Lelouch pulled out a $5 bill handing it to him, but made sure that his finger made contact with the others hand. He heard the gasp, and he knew that he had in his grasp. "You can keep the change," he said in a low voice, a smirk grazing his lips. Lelouch was rather glad that there was no one else in there aside from the workers in the back that were currently making the food. "I know this may seem a little forward of me, but do you want to meet up later today? Unless you’re not....you know into men." He couldn't contain the chuckle that left him when the male behind the counter blushed a bright shade of red.

"Uh...I....uh.....s-sure..." Lelouch released a genuine smile before taking a pen and writing his name and number down on the receipt. "We can meet up when you get out of work, just give me a call," he said with a wink. "A-alright...um, I'm....Rolo..." There was then a beep signaling that the food was ready to go. Rolo quickly packed the food, slowly handing him the bag. "Alright Rolo, I'll see you later," said Lelouch, taking the bag before turning and walking it out leave the blushing male to stare at him till he was out of sight.

When he was a pretty good distance from the place, he released a cynical laugh that was actually playing inside his mind. 'Damn I'm good, I love how these stupid suckers easily fall into my hands!' Reaching into his bag, he pulled out a prepaid phone, making sure that the number on it was the exact one he'd given the boy. 'This will be good.' Reaching the apartment, he unlocked the door to find all the lights still off so he figured Suzaku was still asleep. He put the others breakfast on the table before leaving once again, deciding to head to work early.

The walk to his work was still as quiet as the walk to go pick up breakfast. He figured people were now getting too scared to walk around this early in the morning, well not with the bunch of killings going on. He began to hum to himself before actually letting words spill from his mouth. He knew he was good at singing, due to his parents making him take singing lessons as well as piano lessons, violin lessons and guitar lessons. They were all the aspects of being the perfect son, until all of this started happening.

* * *

Awaking fully from the chronic pain in his back, Suzaku released a displeased growl at how harsh his body seemed to want to awake him. A part of the detective wanted to give up on the real world and fall into a coma-like state. He honestly hated the reality that society could be so cruel. That a fellow man can so brutally torture another living being. If he was still a rookie, there was no way he could solve this case. That was then, and this was now. He had a responsibility to the next target victim. 

"I need to find this lunatic now, before the next guy's guts are lying in the dirt." he muttered, as he lifted himself from the comfort of the sheet. Scratching his head lightly, the brunette made his way back to the small kitchen he shared with his roommate. On the table was the sandwich the other promised before he left. 

"Kid must have gone back to work." he guessed, before trotting over to the icebox and pulling out a bottle of milk. Chugging down half of the liquid, he sat at the pulled out chair before eating his much desired breakfast. There normally wasn't time for common etiquette with his line of work. Giving a glance around the apartment showed how much time was actually spent in there. Suzaku found himself chuckling at the memories of how it was before Lelouch came to live with him. There was a mess everywhere before the college boy fussed about it. Now it was a clean as it could possibly be with two bachelors living in it. 

He had once joked how they should bring in a maid since the detective was too busy to do the work and the grad student was intolerant of the mess, but didn't want to get his own hands dirty. His grin quickly became sullen with the silence surrounding the living room that day. He had forgotten how long it has been since Lelouch's family had passed on, but the old lifestyle was most likely still fresh in the other's mind. Suzaku never did find out what exactly happened that day, but has resolved to wait until the younger man was ready to open up about it. He remembers that phone call in which his childhood friend gave him the news and asked for a place to stay. There wasn't much the detective wouldn't do for the man he felt was like a younger brother to him, but that day, after years of absence, he swore to never allow the dark haired boy to feel that kind of pain again. 

Shaking his head of grim memories, the brown haired man quickly finished his meal, showered and dressed before heading out the door. He didn't have to report into the department until later on that day, so the man made the decision to visit the last crime scene again. There must have been something he had missed that day.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning, things tend to get a little more graphic as the chapters go on...

Lelouch was in the laboratory at the college. Moments like these he was grateful for having a great GPA and gift for the medical department, that's what allowed his access too many things no other person could get their hands on. He'd gotten a job at the university and was paid good money for new discoveries, hell even if he didn't produce results, they never told him anything.  
The door was locked, music playing loud in the room. He had notes spread over the joined desks, and opposite were beakers and test tubes of different materials he was working with. Chewing on the end of a pen, Lelouch was trying to figure out a molecular problem that was keeping the two liquids from blending without forming some sort of chalky clump.

He eventually got frustrated and clumped the paper, tossing it across the room. Releasing a frustrated sigh, he slumped back in the chair, running fingers through his hair. These moments brought back memories of his past, what he had to do to get where he was right now. Closing his eyes, he could easily picture his parent's angry faces, the screams sounded so real, right in his ear.

"You never know how to do anything right!"

"Why do you deliberately try to defy us?"

"We do everything for you, why can't you do the same?!"

"You're a disgrace for a son!!!"

His eyes shot open, looking around. A chill ran over him, as he wrapped his arms around himself. 'Man, even in death they never know when to quit, looks like I can't be fully rid of them, not when there are so many small reminders of them,' he thought, his eyes darkening. His ears picked up the sound of a song he used to listen to a lot when he was a kid. Suzaku introduced him to the band, and from there Lelouch always felt a strong connection to the words for every song.

Wake in a sweat again  
Another day's been laid to waste  
In my disgrace  
Stuck in my head again  
Feels like I'll never leave this place  
There's no escape  
I'm my own worst enemy

"I've given up, I'm sick of feeling, is there nothing you can say? Take this all away, I'm suffocating. Tell me what the fuck is wrong with me?!" His voice rang out with the song, anger welling up inside him. Gripping his head in frustration, the images started coming back. Blood was everywhere, screaming, begging to stop and then beautiful silence soaked in crimson red.

Stabbing his pen into the desk, he cursed the memories and the pain that rang in his head. Staring down at his notes, his eyes scanned the pages as if trying to distract himself from the nagging desire to relive the pain he'd felt for so many years. And then he noticed it, what he was looking for to fix the formula. That provided the antidote for his brain and he began to scribble down the information before getting to work on the chemicals. When he was done, he held up the little test tube that held clear liquid. "This is it, I can use it tonight." He pulled out a canteen bottle and poured it in. "Tell me what the fuck is wrong with me," he laughed, his eyes darkening at the events soon to come.

* * *

Walking past the area where the last crime scene took place, Suzaku took a quick stride through the block. He knew the actual location of the body had been thoroughly cleaned out. In a big city like this, the Mayor would rather have everything done in once day and the citizens to never know or remember a grizzly crime in a common area. The Subway Track would take a serious decline if blood splatter were there for longer than necessary. Of course, since when had death ever been necessary to this city? Buildings did not demand to be painted red. Streets do not need meat grounded into the jagged pavements. The lights did not have to shine on this dark event. Since when has murder become a common appearance in this town? Sometimes he couldn’t stand these questions. 

“There was no way this was a crime hit. Any drug relation or weapons movement has been crossed out entirely by the board. What this city caught was not a virus like the mob, but a parasite. This killer, he wants blood. He desires attention. I’m afraid the more we stay quiet about this, the more gruesome these murders will get. As much as every detective will never want to admit, we won’t be able to save several individuals before this case can be closed. There is not enough evidence left behind. Not in the stall. Not on the rails. No fingerprint. No off-point blood drop. Not even a strand of hair. This son of a bitch strikes first in the park, than the alley, then the market square after hours and now here. Who knows when he started…” he’d monologue to his partner later the next day. 

The profile for serial killers was commonly white males in their early thirties to late fifties. Whom, in their youth, have either done three of five things: tortured and killed small animals, wet the bed, antisocial behavior, fascination with fire or been caught peeping. Usually they started out with a family member or someone else close. "Maybe we should be looking for someone in the typical profile that has tragically lost a family member?" he suggested after coming up with nothing on their combing of the surrounding block. 

Later that week, Suzaku was examining the previous victim photos along with the recently printed additions. Each were bloody and gruesome yet none of the bodies showed any scaring that would indicate hesitation. These were not his first victims, just the first he's willing to share with the world. Looking up at the static overhead, the detective listened to the announcement of another body found. "Where?" was all he could ask.

* * *

Lelouch was tired from a long day of work and his little fiasco with the McDonald’s boy only added more to the pressure in his sore muscles. But it wasn’t something he wasn’t already used to, it was becoming a more welcoming feeling. He unlocked the door to his apartment and was greeted with emptiness, also something he was used to. Since his roommate and friend was a detective he had grown accustomed to the late nights and the feeling of living on his own. But that feeling went back to when he was living with his parents. They were more like strangers than anything, always busy with work and never gave him much credit for anything he did, yet he was always expected to be perfect. 

He felt the sharp pain, his headache was coming back. Groaning he opened up the medicine cabinet and pulled his pills from the back. He dropped two into his hand and downed them with a glass of water. Glancing at the clock, he started his countdown till they “took affect”. There were times he wondered if they were even helping, especially since with all these recent events of Zero coming out. Course he was accepting it as a part of who he was, guess it was natural for him not to have any fear of gutting a live animal, he was already used to looking at dead bodies in the university morgue, so live bodies with blood gushing out was nothing different than a simple anatomy class. 

But there was one thing he couldn’t get used to, it was silence. He specifically gone out and bought at least 4 music ports to fill up the kitchen, living room, his room and the bathroom. Sure it had cost him money but it was worth it to him, but he specifically remembered Suzaku giving him an earful about spending his money wisely. Plugging in his IPod, he pushed play and raised the volume so it filled the entire room. 

Glad you landed on time,  
In the city of the dead.  
How was your flight?  
I'm glad that we met.  
Ain't gonna wait 'til the day  
that dejection comes,  
Ain't gonna waste my time on the pitiful ones (here)

He plopped down onto the living room, staring up at the dark ceiling, allowing his mind to wander. He could still see that horrified face. That poor boy was looking for salvation, the pain of death was in his midst and it was looking for a soul to take. Closing his eyes his mind wandered back to Rolo, his latest victim, and possibly one of the easiest. He released a chuckle, it was getting too easy. 

You know that I'm kind,  
that I like to pretend  
that everything's fine.  
The rain is my friend.  
(I) don't give a damn about fame  
if I gotta have a gun.  
Ain't gonna like myself before  
I get something done (here)

He ran his hands from his neck, slowly down his body with his eyes closed. His mind held excellent memory and it was so descriptive. 

He made that boy believe it was a genuine date; they’d walked around talking and laughed at things. It was actually quite pleasant, but of course all good things come to an end. They ended up in a deserted parking lot and things were getting heated. Rolo was pressed against the wall, and clothes were coming undone. To be honest, Lelouch found it rather hot that they had started getting it on in a place where they could easily be caught. 

But when his shirt came off, Lelouch’s eyes landed on a cross tattoo that the younger male had just above his hip. That god damn cross. And in that split moment, he snapped. He reached into his boot and pulled out his knife and dug it deep into the others chest. He heard the sickening crack of the others ribs breaking, and watched the spluttering blood seep from the wound and through the shocked male’s mouth. His eyes went wild and tried to move away from him but to no avail. Zero was in control now and when Zero wanted you dead, you were going to die.

Yanking the boy back by his hair, he repeatedly stabbed him in the chest, letting the blood fly everywhere and making a distorted yet beautiful graffiti flower out of blood. When the other finally lost all the life in his eyes, he allowed him to slump to the ground. Looking down, Zero tsked to himself, realizing he was now drenched in blood. ‘Hmm, how am I going to clean this up?’ After a while of pondering, Zero just removed his shoes and stepped outside the puddle. ‘Good thing there is a lot of trash here,’ he though amused as he picked up a discarded grocery bag and used it to pack away his shoes. 

His journey home wasn’t a hassle so he made home fine, and he was rather glad that his lab coat was disposable enough to wash or discard, but he chose to keep it for the time being and clean it up for tomorrow’s lab assignment.

Oh yeah!  
Nevermind the things they might've said,  
Oh yeah!  
We're living in the city of the dead.  
Oh yeah!  
Nevermind the things they might've said,  
Oh yeah!  
We're living in the city of the dead.

Lelouch cried out when he felt himself reaching his peak. Guess the sexual stress was getting to him. It didn’t help that it was getting good with the boy before it all went to hell. His music was still playing loud in the background, as he looked down at his hand, now soiled with evidence of what he had been imagining and brought himself pleasure. He couldn’t help but chuckle out loud, feeling rather satisfied with himself at the moment. He suddenly heard the key going into the lock, and he sat upright. ‘Shit!’ Grabbing his bag, he bolted into the laundry room and shut it with a bang behind him. The last thing he wanted was for Suzaku to see him after he just pleasured himself, better occupy himself with doing laundry.

* * *

Dragging the small key out of the door handle, Suzaku sluggishly opened the wooden door with a yawn threatening to take hold. Shaking it off, the detective swung the door closed before striding to the dining table and dropping all the case files onto the counter top. It may be reckless to just leave grizzly photos lying open there, but he had already had a discussion with Lelouch about going through his work when he first moved in. Hearing the ending instruments of the last song began to change into the beginning of something else, he rolled his eyes. While following the guitar strings in this mind he turned to lock and bolt the door. 

Ten men lying on the top above the grave.  
Wondering when savior comes.  
Is he gonna be saved?  
Maybe you’re a sinner into your alternate life.  
Maybe you’re a joker  
Maybe you deserve to die.

“They were crying when their sons left… God is wearing black. He’s gone so far to find no hope, he’s never coming back.” He sang along at this part before entering the small kitchen. After looking through the cabinets he allowed a yawn to take him. “They were crying when their sons left, all young men must go. He’s gone so far to find the truth he’s never going home.” Combing back a few loose strands from his forehead, he marched over to the icebox and gazed at its contents. There were some things he could use before they expired to make a quick dinner, but he wasn’t sure if the college student was hungry yet. Hearing the washing machine roar to life, made him lift his head up and look over to the closed off door. “Hey Lelouch! Have you eaten yet?” he called before dipping back down into the machine and pulling out several zucchini, a carton of mushrooms, one onion, a couple of carrots, butter and some garlic bulbs. 

Boiling the water first, he dropped in the crushed garlic, and sprinkles salt before dipping every type of uncooked pasta they had left over from other meals. Leaving that to cook me prepared the rice cooker to steam up some grains. “Either way I’d rather cook.” He murmured to himself while washing up the vegetables. “It’s better to get a mind off this case for a while.” After chopping the zucchini and carrots into long strips, he sliced the mushrooms, and onion –with only managing a few drops and moist, red eyes- before reaching for the electric griddle. Dipping a dollop of butter into the middle he allowed it to melt before adding all of the vegetables. Seasoning with soy sauce, pepper, garlic power and other ingredients he set the stir-fry aside in a large serving dish. When pasta was done, he drained all of the water before adding teriyaki sauce to the mix. 

Looking off to the still closed door of the laundry room, the detective sighed in annoyance. He leaned against the counter for a bit before hearing the dinging sound of the steam pot going off. The fluffy white rice had steamed nicely, he noted as he poked a few flakes with a fork. Unplugging the device he carried the machine with him back to the griddle before dumping half of its content onto the still warm surface of the griddle. Frying the rice with sesame seeds, soy and other spices he shouted out his earlier question once again in case the boy hadn’t heard him. Pulling out the last three eggs from the fridge, he cooked them next to the rice before adding the scrambled bits to the grains. Turning off the griddle completely, he rushed to pour the rice into a separate bowl before laying it next to the noodles and stir-fry on the bar. 

As Suzaku pulled out a bottle of beer from the fridge, he crossed through the living room with the intent of knocking on the laundry room door. “Hey stop sorting clothes already; dinner’s ready.” He informed before making his way back to the living room and slouching on the couch. Taking a swig of the bitter liquid, the detective kicked off his boots before laying them on top of the small coffee table in the middle. Picking up his foot in surprise at the feel of something against his heal, Suzaku pulled up his left foot and wiped at the bottom with his hand. Something white and a bit sticky was smeared across his palm. Bringing it up to his face he gave a whiff before frowning in confusion. Looking over at the table he noticed a few gleaming drops of the stuff vaguely sticking out from the ivory color of the furniture. 

Heading to the kitchen he grabbed a wet rag from the sink before wiping off the rest of the mess and washing his hands. Deciding not to wait for the other any longer, he served himself a little bit of everything and sat on one of the stools by the bar. 

Welcome to the soldier’s side.  
Where there’s no one here but me.  
People all grow up to die.  
There is no one here but me.  
Welcome to the soldier’s side.  
Where there’s no one here but me.  
People on the solder’s side,  
There is no one here but me.

* * *

Lelouch shut the washing machine, releasing an exasperated sigh. That blood was a pain in the ass to wash away. Especially since it was a pure white fabric, but nothing a whole amount of bleach and spraying couldn't fix. If worse came, he would just burn it and buy a new one. Rinsing his hands in the faucet near the washer, he finally gained his courage and ventured out of the washing room. His eyes landed on the other, cleaning the table with a wet rag. His eyes widened, realizing just what it was he was cleaning. 'Shit.’ 

Lelouch quietly closed the door again, his face bright red at the remembrance of earlier. Not only had he almost been caught in the act, but he’d left remnants. He really hoped that the other had no clue of what it was, and wouldn’t question him about it. Breathing slowly, he finally was able to regain himself and venture out once more. "Sorry Suzaku, I was trying to get that coat as clean as possible, the last cadaver made a mess everywhere."

He turned his gaze away, stretching his arms out and releasing a yawn. "How was work?" He felt his tummy growl at the smell of the others cooking. Like a child he hurried off to grab the food that the other had left for him, a smile on his face. 'Nothing compares to his cooking,' he thought happily, shoving a forkful of food into his mouth. 'Mmm, so much better than fast food!' He then reached into the fridge to grab a bottle of water. Unlike the other, he didn’t drink much, usually it was only during out events such as parties and when they occasionally went out to eat. But he avoided it as much as he could, as it was, medication and pills never really mixed well.

Taking a seat on the single couch, he tucked his feet Indian-style which was a habit of his when he sat alone. He took the remote for the IPod jack, turning off the music. Turning on the news, the daily headlines were of no surprising change. Death, murder, rape, corruption, etc. etc. “Geez, it’s like with each passing day it seems to get a bit more horrible out there,” he commented, putting another forkful of food in his mouth. ‘Well we aren’t making it any better now are we? Another day, another horribly mutilated body for the world to find and exploit!’ 

Lelouch felt a shiver run down his spine at those words, the feeling like he’d just eaten something retched and it was coursing through him. He felt sick, he needed his medicine. Placing the food on the coffee table, he carried his bottle of water to the cabinet and quickly took what he needed. “Man these headaches after work are killer, wouldn’t you agree,” he asked out loud, after swallowing the bitter tasting pill and waited for his sanity to cleanse out, for the moment.

Though he knew he was only kidding himself with all this sanity crap. He'd lost any sense of that after everything he had been through, and especially after everything he had done. Happy pills only provided that artificial feeling that seemed to paint over your real expressions, like a brick wall that you consistently hit until you start knocking the blocks loose before it comes crashing down and you gotta take another to build it up again from the mess you made. Breathing lightly to himself, he ran his hand over his forehead before returning to the living room, to feed the rest of the food to his tummy to create nourishment for later on.

* * *

Hearing a creak of the laundry door behind him, the detective decided to ignore the hesitant young man for the moment and focused on looking for the bottle of hot sauce. After seeing the dopey smile on Lelouch's face, the older man couldn't prevent one of his own from forming. Being around the younger since childhood, he knew how little the other had actually eaten home-made food. It assured Suzaku of their bond, with his ability to provide this experience to the other. They may not eat at a traditional table, but being able to kick back like this was better than nothing. 

Hearing the other switch the television on, the brunette choose to ignore the reporter for the most part. He knew at one point the statement Chief Gottwald made would be made public sooner or later, which was something he'd rather avoid. "Yeah, it's pretty grim out there. Hurry up and graduate! We need more brilliant minds in our forensics department." he joked trying to lighten the mood a bit. There was no need to overthink this current case. Not with so much more on the line. He had noticed that the more common profile among the victims were young men in their early to mid-twenties. This of course made the cop more nervous of his young friend's late night courses. Maybe if he could get Lelouch an internship...?

Hearing the other's complaint about the pain in his head, the detective looked back up to see him coming closer to the kitchen for those pills. Feeling a frown cross his face once again, Suzaku watched at the student downed those thick pills. "They're appearing more frequently these days. Are you sure you don't want to see the doc about this? My insurance could cover it, you know." he offered. He couldn't remember when Lelouch had started taking these pills on a daily basis, but it never crossed him as something good. Honestly he was used to trudging through life with the pain. In the back of his mind, the worst picture always appeared such as this figurative little brother either getting addicted or even overdosing on pain medication. 

Finishing off his drink, his eye caught back onto the wet rag he had used to clean the table earlier. Being a man in his late twenties he knew fully well what smell it was that came off of it. If he should bring it up was another dilemma altogether. How do you ask someone who is living with you, if he had rubbed on off or brought someone over recently? Did he really want to know who the other was fucking? Feeling annoyed at these questions more than he should be, Suzaku decided to forget about it for now and focus on letting loose after a hard day's work. "Hey, kid. Why don't you be a pal and get me another bottle while you're in the kitchen. In fact, why don't the both of us kick back this weekend and do some shots?"

Lelouch didn't know when he started losing focus of the reality around him. It was his desire to live a 'normal' life, the desire to tear apart the meaning of being 'normal' and where he stood when it came to living as good or evil. Most moments he felt as if he lived in limbo, the only places he ever showed true expressions when he was 'his other self' and when he was with Suzaku. Blinking a few times, he registered what the other was talking to him about. Smiling at the mentioning of graduating to join the task force, he couldn't help but laugh to himself about it. 'If you only knew how much I know about this case...'.

Running his utensil over his food, he stiffened at the mention of how frequent his pills were coming out. He'd never really come clean as to what they were for. He'd rip the label off of them every time he got a new bottle, and had mentioned that he took them to Suzaku when he first started living with him, but avoided the subject of what they were. Chewing his bottom lip lightly, he released a soft sigh. "They only seem frequent because you tend to pull all-nighters and there are times when you don't come home. It's nothing to worry about, trust me."

He offered a smile to try to ease the others worried look. 'They don't even feel like they are working anymore...' Spooning some food into his mouth, he chewed softly, eyes on the TV. He was getting thirsty, filling a cup with some sweet tea he'd brewed a few days back. Rolling his eyes lightly at the call for another beer, he pulled one out from the fridge. "Careful now, these are habit forming," he called back. Popping the cap off, he could smell the pungent smell. He never did like beer, the few times he drank he preferred the harder liquor. 

Handing it to Suzaku, he noticed the rag on the table. "Now what did I say about leaving stuff all over the place," he sighed, picking up the rag and tossing it into the washroom. Going back for his food, he tried to steady his breathing hoping that his face hadn't turned red at the thought of nearly being caught getting himself off. Sitting back down on the couch, he took a drink of his tea. "Sure, if you aren't too busy. I should be done with my project by the weekend, so I'll pick up the drinks to save you the trip."

* * *

Giving his gratitude after being handed the second bottle, Suzaku gave the other the worst sorry-face he could make. "Well that wouldn't have been left there if you had cleaned up after yourself in the first place." he teased implying, but not necessarily pointing out that he knew what was spilt on the coffee table. While Lelouch was busy taking the rag back to the laundry room, the detective set his eyes back on the television, prompting his feet up on the furniture piece once again. 

His eyes took a sharp tone as the news report's opening music waved through the air. "In an urgent report, Police Commissioner Schneizel has issued a state of emergency..." the anchor blared out before the image faded to the press conference made earlier that day. At the podium was one of his many superiors speaking to the crowd of rambunctious field reporters. Behind the man stood Chief Jeremiah Gottwald as well as his partner, Gino, and himself right next to the man. 

"At this moment we cannot give away all the details of this case of serial murders other than the fact that they appear to be the work of an experienced killer. We are taking different profile traits but certain things are made clear. At the moment we have our detectives here to take questions in a bit, but before that I will state there being a curfew set on all civilians at 10pm. Take the necessary precautions when commuting from any night shifts and stay in visible areas. The killer seems to be targeting young adults ranging from the ages of 19 through 28." the commissioner states before the ramble of questions start sprouting from the press below. As the conference newsfeed continues, Suzaku glanced to the folder containing his crime photos. 

"The killer is male with some kind of knowledge of medical background." the head of the forensics department had said earlier. Perhaps it's someone who snapped while working in the field? Leaving the half empty bottle on the counter, Suzaku made his way towards his room. "Make sure you don't stay up too late," he reminded Lelouch while ruffling the dark locks of the other man's hair. "You have a test tomorrow." As he reached his room, he took one look back to his roommate on the couch before entering and closing the door.

* * *

Lelouch chewed his bottom lip, not allowing the embarrassment to become eminent on his face. 'There is no way he could know what it was....for all he would know is that I spilled something...why would he look so close at stains...' Averting his gaze to the television screen, his figure alerted to attentiveness. He was rather interested to find out how the case was going so far. It had taken them a long while to actually piece together that his killings were prominent and meeting the standards of a serial killer. Sipping at his glass of tea, he listened to the words of Suzaku's boss with an emotionless expression. 

'Heh...experienced killer...' Shivers went down his spine at the voice that mocked the words of the television, shifting slightly with the uncomfortable feeling that his other side was becoming more daring, more prominent. He caught sight of Suzaku in the screen, standing with his partner as head detectives for the case. 'Poor Suzaku....you look so tired. It is so visible on the screen, as well as here in real life...' Casting his gaze at his roommate, he silently analyzed him from an angle. How close was he to figuring out the ID of his persona, how long before he had to change up his game?

Lelouch blinked when he saw him move to place his beer on the counter. He gave off a soft grunt when he felt his hair being ruffled. "Yes, I know. I'll do fine." 'As much as I would like to tell you that I am the one you are looking for, I just can't seem to part from this lifestyle. It may be inhumane to the eyes of the world, but to me...it's my only sense of being...' He stiffened slightly when he noticed Suzaku looking at him. A smile formed on his mouth, and he held up his hand as a silent goodnight, not lowering his arm until the door was closed. 'I will continue to play innocent, I will mask my imperfections and save them for the darkness, where they belong.'

Releasing a sigh, he turned off the T.V and went to rinse out the plates. "Messy, messy," he mumbled to himself. Once he was done, he drained out the water and released a yawn. "It's gotten so late." Dragging himself into his room, he slid the door shut and locked it behind him. The last time he'd left it unlocked, Suzaku had stumbled in on him having a nightmare and he'd come close to having to explain what haunted him in his dreams. Stripping himself of his shirt, he fell back onto the bed and closed his eyes. All that awaited him in the darkness, were blood and secrets.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special Thanks to my best friend Ayame for helping me with this.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning, things tend to get a little more graphic as the chapters go on...

At the office the next morning, another stack of papers made their way onto Suzaku's desk. Ever since the press conference the other day, the phone lines were flooded with anonymous tips. It was a part of his job to follow up on any leads given to them no matter how ludicrous. "A three headed alien, you say?" he responded to the voice on the other end of the phone. "Yes, ma'am, I am mark down everything you say and it will be the first thing I look to. Thanks for the help, goodbye." as he hung up the receiver on the dashboard he caught the glimpse of his partner looking at him with his own desk phone against his ear. Picking up his left hand, Suzaku pointed his index finger towards his head in a spiral motion. The other man laughed silently to himself before making an imaginary pistol pointed to his own head indicating his boredom of this part of the job. 

Chief Gottwald barged his way out of his office, at this point, making a beeline to the two detectives coincided to each other. "Get to Frankston Park, now! Another body has been found." the man ordered before sending out another squadron to assist at the crime scene. The two men looked at each other in serious silence before grabbing their coats and making their way to the garage downstairs. 

"We'll take my car; it's faster." Detective Gino Weinberg stated as the two scrambled into the ford and exited the station. As Gino drove, Suzaku placed the siren on top of the auto from his window. He gritted his teeth in anger as they speed past the traffic halting for them. Arriving at the same time as the coroner's, the tall man made his way to the nearest forensic field analyst.  
"The body was found outside the far left entrance to the park in the parking lot obscured by the bushes near one of the lamp posts." the woman explained as she took out her notes made earlier. "Found by a couple of hikers with their dog, whom parked nearby, at around 9:45 this morning." Green eyes followed to where the lady pointed before the two men thanked her and made their way over. Seeing the body lye askew Gino took out his notepad as the brunette man made observations.

"The body is male, between ages 17-23, brown hair, purple eyes. Shirt remains open and pants unzipped indicating he was being intimate during the attack. There is a deep wound in the chest, twisted open with multiple smaller stab wounds in the surrounding areas." Being handed the wallet taken from the victim's pocket, the man opened it up and continued. "Name is Rolo Lamperouge... he works at McDonald's according to his worker ID."

"Could go for one of those sausage biscuits right now." his partner joked slightly, catching Suzaku's raised eyebrow. Shaking his head at the idea, the 26 year old continued to make his report before allowing the coroner's to do their job as well. The rest of the day was carried out through interviews with the victim’s family, co-workers, boss and friends. Each were greatly shocked, but there was one who insisted the young man shouldn't have been in danger. 

"He was so excited... he said he was going on a date..."

* * *

Lelouch sat in the lab, head resting in his hands as he flicked the pencil up only for it to roll back down. Today had seemed to be pretty slow. He woke up at his usual time, exiting his room to find that Suzaku had already left. After getting ready and heading out, he decided to pick up breakfast from a different location. No sense in returning to that particular fast food place for a while. He couldn't help but smirk in remembrance on how that boy followed him like a puppy. 

Passing an empty alley, he pulled out the prepaid phone he'd used to get a hold of that restaurant boy. He'd made sure to remove the chip that was inside so the purchasing wouldn't be traced back to him as well as to wipe it down with alcohol to kill any prints and encase it in a plastic bag. Opening up the bag, he dropped the phone into the trashcan before carrying on his way. He'd made it to his class in a decent amount of time, and was finished with his exam in less than half an hour. He remembered the proud look on Professor Asplund’s face, knowing just how much potential the young man had. 

Now he was spending his time in the lab, entertaining himself with pencil on the desk. Things were moving to slow for him, he hated the dragging feeling. Turning on the radio, he closed his is eyes to see if time would pass faster if he decided to take a nap. "We interrupt this broadcast to send out an announcement that another murder has occurred. The body of Rolo Lamperouge was found early this morning, and the police are combing the area for more evidence, stay tuned for more news later tonight." Lelouch's eyes shot open at the sound of the small news report. 

A smile formed on his lips and a laugh erupted from his throat. "Well aren't they fast." Looking up into the mirror, the reflection that came back was one that was twisted into a sadistic and blood thirty grin. 

"Heh, your handsome features are the best weapon we have, and then with my steady, blood driven hand, we are unstoppable. Don't you agree?" 

'...Yes Zero...'

"Now that they have started sniffing around the crime scene, it's time to dispose of the remaining evidence." 

Pulling out the plastic bag and chip, he shifted through the items in the lab until he found what he was looking for. The chemical that Lelouch had created the previous day was left in a beaker to ferment and increase in potency. Opening up the plug, the room was filled with sickening smell of sulfuric acid. Pouring some into a test tube, he stored that aside for later use. "Now then, time to get rid of this trash." Dropping the items into the beaker, he watched in satisfaction as the items slowly began to deteriorate at a fast pace.

"I'll leave that up to you to dispose of." Turning on the Bunsen burner, he pulled out one last thing. The receipt he'd used to write his name and number on. He grabbed that from the dead body when he was done with him. "Removing prints of waxed paper is best removed by fire, don't you think?" Watching as the paper caught fire, he dropped it onto a Petr dish and watched it turn to ash. "We should go on dates more often, it wouldn't hurt to get some once in a while, just make sure to pick someone you won't stab in the middle of sex," laughed Zero.

After relaxing for a few moments, Lelouch found himself back in the driver's seat. Sighing, he started cleaning up the mess, making sure to dilute the sulfuric acid with the crushed ice made from de-ionized water. Once he was finally done, he realized most to the day had passed. Pouring it down the drain, he made sure to rinse out the beaker well before tossing it into the bin for the laboratory equipment to be disposed of properly. "Guess it's time to head home."

* * *

During his lunch break, Suzaku found himself rummaging through files at his desk. Feeling a pat on his shoulder, he turned around to notice his partner standing behind. "Yo, Suzaku, let's grab a burger. We ain't got nothing to do until those tech results come back or another body drops." the man jibbed as he swung his brown coat over his shoulder. The detective gave a sluggish nod, giving in to the fact that he was hungry, before placing all the paper's back in the desk drawer and following Gino out the lobby door. 

In the streets the two debated on where to eat before noticing the special to an old-time dinner. Upon entering, they made their way to a booth and quickly ordered. The green-eyed man gave an exhausted sigh before taking a long sip from his soda. "We got lucky the last victim was very chatty with his roommate and wrote down the number to this 'date' before dying off. Think the trace search will be able to find the phone id soon?" his co-worker asked as the waitress brought over the burgers they had ordered.  
Suzaku grabbed the bun to check if everything was made to how he wanted before grimacing and switching the plates between the two. "How can you stand horseradish in your burger?" he questioned before taking a bite of his actual order. Gino laughed as he shrugged it off and jester to their waitress at another table with her back towards them. 

"Dim as a rock, I bet, but she got one fine piece of ass." the dirty blond haired man laughed. Suzaku rolled his eyes before answering to the previous question. He never did like talking about girls in front of other men, always getting uncomfortable by the catcalls. He has dated before back when he was in high school, but things never seemed to click or last. 

"Whatever, all I know is that even if the phone has been deactivated, we may be able to pull up any records based on it. This is our first solid lead in a long while since these killings have started. It's best we don't get distracted." Both men made a few observations about the case as well as whatever was new with either of them and the usual topics throughout their meal. When the time came down to it. They split the bill even and made their way back to Suzaku's car. "It seems like every time I see him, he's always swallowing down another one of those pills... It's bothersome to think he could be taken advantage of by this doctor forcing prescriptions he might not need... or even worse if he happens to be out while drugged up and someone were to come along." Feeling a thump on his head, the detective turned to give a glare at his partner.

"Don't worry about these things too much, man. The boy is old enough to take care of himself." Gino responded as the both sat by their desks. Both men turned away to look over the individual notes taken from each crime scene." Hearing his partner make a sudden snap of his fingers, the green eyed man looked up curiously at the other. "The last victim worked at a McDonalds, right? Well what if he met his secret date there!" Realizing what the other was getting at, Suzaku picked up the receiver to his phone to dial the manager of the fast food place to see if they would be able to view the security footage.

* * *

Lelouch released a yawn, slowly making his way down the sidewalk. He was not in any particular hurry to get home, nothing but homework and quiet spaces awaited him. The slight pounding in his head was a reminder that he would need to take his medicine when he got home. Not like it did anything really, but he did love the feeling of swallowing the pill down. It was as if he was attempting to stop the bad from happening even though he knew it was pointless. 

He soon found himself about to pass the McDonalds from the other day. Stopping in his tracks, he couldn't quite put his finger on the uneasiness he was feeling. Police cars were parked outside, which meant that they finally traced back to where the young man had worked. Chewing on his bottom lip, he tried to think of what it was he could be forgetting. Merging with the crowd of people outside, he was able to see some of the cops conversing with the manager who was motioning to a security room.

'Security footage?!' Lelouch began to fidget slightly at the one thing he'd forgotten about. 'Shit, what am I going to do about that?' The laughter he heard inside his head made him rigid. 'Don't worry about it. Let them have this, being able to get around without letting them know who we are was starting to get boring...Let's make it a fun game...' 

Nodding to himself, the boy approached the door, deciding to make something of the situation instead of just standing around outside with the rest of them. Pushing the door open, he was greeted by the bustling of policemen, working their way around individuals picking up their meals. "Yeah, can I have a number 12," he ordered, once he was at the front of the line. His purple eyes looked around to see where exactly the cameras were situated. 

'Seems like they are placed facing the cash registers, so my back was probably faced towards them the entire time, not making it easy to decipher what exactly I did that day...'

* * *

The detective observed the feed silently while Gino munched on stale fries next to him. There were fifteen customers so far during Rolo Lamperouge's shift; three women, ten children and two men. Suzaku was slightly bothered by the fact that the manager was insistent on keeping the place in operations during the investigation, but there was not much he could do about it. By the time the video showed the victim leaving, there had been twenty-three new hairstyles to observe. Another bothersome security angle. It was very interesting to note that after a certain male customer left, the cashier seemed to be a bit more cheery and animated. 

Leaving the security room, the twenty-six year old maneuvered his way to the other side of the counter, avoiding all employees rushing along the way. Looking over to the registers he noticed a familiar haircut and jacket, before recognizing the voice of the one placing the order. "Hey there, kid. Didn't expect to see ya out here this late." he chided as he leaned against the counter next to Lelouch. Seeing the startled look, he couldn't hide the slight smile on his own face. It was at this point he felt himself being thrown off balanced as his partner playfully shoved him aside. 

"Sup, Lelouch? Long time no see! Out of school already? Look out! Suzaku might give ya another lecture about being out at this Godly hour of 10PM!" Detective Weinberg jabbed as the two did some sort of high five greeting. Suzaku rolled his eyes before looking back at his chatterbox of a partner trying to make more jokes about how much he worried. 

* * *

Lelouch had just stuck the change in his pocket when he heard a familiar voice next to him. He normally didn't get startled easily, especially since his condition gave him heightened senses to the surroundings when he would commit his crimes. But it seemed that his best friend and roommate had that effect on him. His startled expression soon softened into a smile, but before he could respond to the other, Suzaku was knocked away by his partner. 

His soft smile stretched into a playful grin, as he high-fived the other. "Yes it has been a while, Gino." A chuckle escaped him at the jokes of his roommate's worrying. "Yeah, I just left a few minutes ago. Things ran a little late at the lab, since I'm needed to produce results on given subjects monthly. I was starving so I decided to come grab something to eat." He turned his gaze to Suzaku. "I wasn't sure if you were going to be working late, so I wasn't sure if I needed to pick you up food." 

A cashier called out his order number, making him excuse himself for a moment. 'Such compassion and fun, such a shame that they don't know they are conversing with the enemy' came the mocking laughter in his head. Lelouch winced in pain, reaching his hand up to grip his head. Now wasn't the time to allow Zero's jabbering to affect him. He was in public, he had to keep it together. He would only cry out in pain when he was alone in the house or in the lab. Taking in a sharp breath, he grabbed his bag and walked back to the other two.

"It's rather strange to see you two out a fast food place, especially in uniform. Does this have something to do with the crazy serial killer that I heard about on the news? Should I be concerned?" He reached into his bag, pulling out a fry to munch on. He looked from Gino to Suzaku, eyes softening. "By the way, what time should I expect you home?"

* * *

"It's 10:57, don't make me out to be the mother in this situation. You know this killer is out there right now, trying to find another victim." Suzaku argued while the two laughed. When Lelouch went to obtain his food, the brunette went to dismiss the rest of the force. There was going to be little to be found here, it seemed. When he went back he noticed Gino giving him a knowing look. "I admit I may spend more time than I should on this case, but what choice is there. I've got to keep you and everyone else safe." 

As the two roommates conversed, the blonde made small quips about the three of them getting drinks together while sneaking a fry or two away from the younger man. "Well if you're so tired, than you don't have to join us, but I'm stealing your bro for a few more hours. This guy owes me a bottle from the last case we had." Gino joked as the three headed to the door. With reluctance, Suzaku gave up trying to convince his partner that now was not the time for liquor.

"I'll see you at home, Lelouch. First I need to make sure this idiot actually makes it home."

* * *

Lelouch nodded, watching the other two walk off in a different direction. The smile he had on his face was slowly turning down to a frown before he turned and walked off in the opposite direction. He was in no real hurry to get home, slowly munching on his fries. 'What is with the bad mood all of a sudden?' Shaking his head, he tried his best to ignore the nagging voice attempting to pick fun at him. 

Stopping at a nearby park, he sat down, munching on the fish burger he'd purchased, staring off into the distance. 'You know no good ever comes out of ignoring me.' Releasing a sigh, Lelouch crumbled the wrapper once he was done with his food. "I'll ignore you however long I want," he spoke out loud. "Lelouch?" He swung around to see a woman standing farther down the path. "I thought that looked like you, what are you doing out at this time?"

He took a moment to analyze her face, racking his memory. It finally came back to him, and he formed a smile on his lips. "Euphie, it’s nice to see you. I was just eating my dinner, getting ready to head back home." She returned the smile, walking over to him and taking a seat next to him. "I heard you are working on your masters at the school. How are your experiments coming along?" "Pretty good, it’s a little slow sometimes but the payoff is good when things finally come around." 

They sat there talking for a while, laughing as they brought up memories of their earlier years in college. The classes they'd taken together, the experiments and finals that they'd stressed themselves over. "So tell me, have you found anyone special yet? Or is your experiments still your lady," Euphmia asked, laughter in her voice. Lelouch offered a chuckle, shaking his head. "No, I don't have anyone special." Suddenly, he felt himself getting light headed, his chuckle turning into full out laughter. His mind was spinning and he was beginning to see black. "Lelouch? What's wrong? Lelouch?!" 

* * *

The sound of hard water hitting the ground, along with the smell of rain and pungent iron hit him as he slowly came to. "Ugh....what the hell?" Opening his eyes, it took him awhile to come to terms with where he was. Rested underneath a pavilion near an area under construction, it was pouring rain around him. Somehow he was drenched as well, so much confusion running through him. Then he saw it, the dismantled body lying in the rain.

She was cut open, rain seeping inside and her insides were disintegrated, her bronchial tubes were blistered and burned, her skin had red patches and had bleeding holes along her lips. Eyes were wide open in horror, hand stretched out as if begging for help in her final moments. Lelouch's mouth dropped open, not understanding how this could have happened. Euphie had no resemblance to his family, nothing should have triggered him. The maniacal laughter in his head brought him back to reality. 'Isn't she beautiful? Both inside and out, hahahahahaha!' 

Shaking his head frantically, tears began to pour from his eyes. 'You should throw her in the construction and burn it, otherwise your prints will more than likely be all over Euphemia.' Shaking, he reached out and dragged her into the building. Laying her amongst the rubble, Lelouch caressed her lifeless face, whispering a soft "I'm sorry" before dumping nearby gasoline tanks, that were stored away for the machinery and trucks, onto her body and the surrounding area. 

Using what was left of a disposable lighter he'd bought a few months back, he tossed it into the building, slowly watching the flames rise before the entire place was engulfed. Clenching his fists, he turned and bolted down the pathway, tears of anger and sorrow blinding him as he continued running, not having a destination in mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special Thanks to my best friend Ayame for helping me with this.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning, things tend to get a little more graphic as the chapters go on...

Once the two detectives reached Gino's favorite nightclub, they made their way over to the bar to order the first round of drinks. "Let's start off light, we're still on call remember?" Suzaku had said at first as they shared several bottles of Dos Equis. As the hours rolled by, Detective Weinberg continued to order harder drinks. Soon enough both men were joking around and chatting with other patrons of the bar that evening. 

"So I told him, 'Come live with me. We'll have fun just like when we were kids!' and he did! The little bugger actually moved in and I was so looking forward to it... but he's always busy with school now." Suzaku hiccuped while he chatted with an older looking man near the back wall. He had lost track of where his partner had scurried off, but knew to find him in a bit. The other adult looked at him continuously during his small talk, making the green-eyed man slightly unnerved. "Well, should have figured. I mean he is a college kid." 

After more chats, Gino finally caught up to the detective. "Yo man! It's late. Let's pay the tab and get a cab!" he laughed while dragging Suzaku away from the flirtatious crowd. The two quipped as they made their way to Weinberg's apartment. "Is that a fire?!" the older man suddenly shouted as he looked beyond the front window the car. In the distance they could see a slight flame grow over the tops of the buildings as sirens rang around them. 

"Let's not worry about it tonight. If it's important, we'll get paged." Suzaku's green eyes stayed on the bright lights for a bit longer before the taxi continued to drive along the corner to main street.

* * *

Lelouch couldn't really tell where he was going, but he didn't care, he just wanted to get as far away from that area as he could. 'How? How could this have happened? There was no resemblance, so why?' The rain was blurring his vision, and almost seemed to blur his thoughts. 'I don't understand why you are getting so upset, it’s in our nature to do what we want to do the moment we want to.' He continuously shook his head, trying to deny Zero’s voice. His feet hit the main road, giving him a quick moment to turn and face an oncoming car, headlights flaring and the sound of the horn blaring before he felt a quick harsh moment of pain, followed by darkness.

Lelouch sat up, taking in quick gasps of air and looking around. Everything was white and he was greeted with a face similar to his own, a warped, sadistic grin plastered on his face. 'Welcome, this is the first time we've actually come to see each other face to face, so to speak.' Lelouch blinked continuously for a few moments, heart beating loudly in his head. "Am I dead?" Zero laughed, shaking his head. 'Oh no, the car probably knocked you into a slight coma like state, if anything you'll be scathed with a concussion when you wake. But trust me when I say, you'll be fine.' 

Zero motioned for Lelouch to take a seat across from him. 'Come, sit. We have a lot to talk about. Especially when it comes to what just happened. As well when it comes down to those 'happy' pills you take to keep yourself in check.' Lelouch nodded, sitting across from him, running his hands through his hair.

* * *

As the cab arrived to Detective Weinberg's apartment, the two partners parted ways. "Don't forget to pick up your car from the bar, tomorrow." Suzaku reminded Gino as the blond man made his way to the front door.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever! Just don't stay up having too much fun, you two. Oh and tell the kid I said 'late night indeed!' when you get home, Suzaku. He'll know what I mean." As the cab driver pulled out of the curb, Suzaku closed his eyes tightly as he felt another wave of dizziness consume his vision. 

"Next time I won't drink at all", he thought to himself while pinching the bridge of his nose. Thinking back to what Gino had said made him look up instantly to realize there was another man sharing the cab with him. "How drunk am I to have not noticed?" he wondered as he examined the slightly older looking patron. 

"So we going to your place or mine?" the business man's smooth voice asked almost knowing the detective over in confusion. He thought about why this gent looked familiar before realizing this had been the bar customer he was chatting with most of the night. 

"Well if you want to crash at my place, I wouldn't mind, but don't be too loud. I have a younger roommate who has school in the morning… what was your name again?" he replied as his green eyes glanced into the other's grey orbs. He didn't entirely know why this person would not want to go to his own house, but didn't dwell on it for long. 

"Waldstien. Bismarck. This is the seventh time you’ve asked and yes, you've been talking about your 'adorable little roommate' all night. It would be interesting to see if he'd like his 'older brother' to be sharing a bed with another man." Bismarck spoke while adjusting his tie. Suzaku tilted his head to the side in confusion. 

"If you don't like the couch than that's fine, I guess." he replied lazily as the cab arrived at his and Lelouch's apartment. As the two exited the cab, Suzaku insisted on paying but the other pulled out his wallet before the detective could get the chance. The cop opened the front door and began to climb the stairs to the second floor, before reaching his place. As he pulled out his keys, he felt the other lean down over his shoulder and gave a weird sigh. Not thinking much about it, he opened the door and made his way inside, inviting the other as well. "Lelouch might be asleep." he noted while turning on one of the lamps to the dark apartment. Feeling himself being pushed onto the recliner, he turned around to see Bismarck above him and removing his business suit. "What's going on?" he asked confusingly. This couldn't be a robbery, could it?

* * *

There was no way to tell how long they had been talking. Surrounded by nothing but stark white, it seemed like things were transitioning slow. Lelouch sat with his knees tucked up to chest like he did when he was a child. Conversation about childhood past seemed to ripple around them like a horrid dripping memory. 'Have you ever thought that maybe the need for a stigma as a reminder of your family is not the only reason you desire to see the beautiful crimson color?' He shook his head, looking up at the other him. "I don't desire that." 

Zero paused for a moment, staring at him with a somewhat hollow-like gaze. His lips then turned up into a grin, slanting his head slightly. 'Oh? If that were true I wouldn't be here now would I?' He was at a momentary loss for words, remembering that during the time of his childhood Zero had been his only source of comfort, but at the time he wasn't given that name. "That wasn't the reason....I needed a friend...not a murderer..." The grin slowly turned into a scowl, his dark eyes flashing with rage. 'Murderer? Have your forgotten that you were the one that called for me?!' 

Lunging at him, hand wrapping around his neck. Lelouch barely managed to gasp in air, feeling the fingers seem to tighten around his neck. 'Do you remember what they did to you?!' He turned his head away, attempting to block out the others words, squeezing his eyes shut. 'Do you remember how Marianne berated you for everything you did? How Guinevere tore apart any hope you had of having a 'normal' childhood? How Charles beat your body to the point where you had to hide your tears because you couldn't move a muscle without the black and blue bruises they left ache?'

"...shut up..." Tears formed at the ends of Lelouch's eyes, shaking his head while trying to take in air. Zero tightened his grip, yanking the others face closer. 'How about the times your father dragged you through the house by your hair because you made a small mistake during lessons? Or the times your mother turned her back on you when you would tell her that her male friends would inappropriately touch you?' 

"....stop it..."

'How about the way that slutty sister of yours liked to display a little too much affection, especially in the middle of the night?' The tears started to fall from his eyes at the thought of Guinevere, his breaths becoming more and more shallow.  
'So tell me, why am I here?! Tell me what you wanted to do to those people that tortured you till you couldn't take it anymore?!' 

Lelouch reached his hand up, trying to remove the grip from his throat only to have it tightened. 

'TELL ME!' His eyes snapped open and he yanked the others hand off his throat. 

"I WANTED THEM TO DIE! I WANTED THEM TO FEEL ALL THE HATRED I HAD FOR THEM AS I CUT THEM OPEN AND WATCH AS THEIR BLOOD WAS SPILLING ON THAT STUPID MARBLE FLOOR! I WANTED THEM TO BURN IN THE PITS OF HELL FOR EVERYTHING THEY DID TO ME!"

Zero smiled, reaching out to touch his face. 'So then why am I here?' Lelouch reached up to touch that cold hand pressed against his flesh. "To help me rid the world of everything and everyone who could remind me of those wretched bastards." His smile widened, running his hand down his face. 'Do you accept the fact that we are one and the same? I am everything you wanted to be, and I will accomplish everything you want to me to....we will bathe this world in beautiful crimson' Lelouch could feel a grin forming on his face. 

'So we will continue to get rid of those pathetic weaklings, and if we happen to harm those who aren't in our 'criteria' then it can't be helped...' Lelouch shook his head, reaching up to grip his forehead. "We can't.....they'll become suspicious...." Zero tilted his head, thinking about it for a moment. 'True...then I guess you better start upping that 'happy' pill dosage, because you know I just can't help myself when tempted to rip through flesh...' The sudden sound of voices rushed around them, causing Lelouch to grip his head in pain. 'Don't fight it, they are trying to wake you up...we shall meet again, our connection is growing stronger. Till then, keep up the innocent charade' 

Lelouch opened his eyes, greeted by flashing lights and people gathered around him. Gasping for air, he fumbled around with his hands, realizing he was laying on the pavement. "Sir are you alright?" The cop standing over him shielded him from the light for a moment. The patch on his uniform had the name Kaname Ohgi on it. 

"Yeah...I'm fine..."

"Let us take you to the hospital..." Ohgi reached down to help him up, but Lelouch shook his head. 

"No...I'm alright, I just want to go home..." 

"But sir-" 

"I said, take me home!" Officer Ohgi went silent, before nodding and helped the young man into the backseat of the squad car. 

"You really are something, most people would be rolling over complaining everything hurt."

Lelouch rested his head against the window, staring out at the scenery. "It takes a lot more than a car to stop me," he mumbled, a grin creeping along his face.

* * *

"Waldstein, I assure that you have messed with the wrong man. There is nothing of value in this building, but other than that, I happen to be a police officer and will not be afraid to defend this domicile." Suzaku argued as he tried to gather his bearings and lift himself from the recliner. Bismarck gave a short laugh before placing his knee in between the detective's knees. Going still from uncertainty, green eyes faltered slightly to look at the limb casually resting against his inner thigh before striking his gaze back into the deep grey ones of the older man above him. Slowly things seemed to get more confusing by the minute. If this was a robbery, than why hasn't he made his demands yet?

"I know you're a cop. A detective in fact. You've mentioned it back at the bar while we flirted. If you are into that role play thing though, then I'll play along." Bismarck grinned before firmly gripping the brunette man's left arm and bending it behind his neck. Suzaku released a small gasp as things seemed to click. 

"Wait! We're not here to sleep?!" he rambled as the taller body leaned closer to him. His arm began to ache as he tried to push the other with his free hand. Feeling a sharp chill go up his spine he could feel the business man's knee press against his crotch. 

"Of course we are... now in this game of yours, I suppose I should 'steal' your virginity." Suzaku shivered as the other pressed a rough kiss against his lips. His eyes widened as he felt sharp teeth chew at his bottom lip. Realization dawned on him that Bismarck had come over for a one-night stand and felt foolish at how he didn't have the common sense to figure it out sooner. 

"...but I'm not gay!" he thought nervously. The sound of metal clicking brought his attention to the front door as the lock unlatched and slowly began to creak open, allowing the hall light to ghost over him. The impulse to call out was too strong to ignore causing him to momentarily forget about the kiss being pressed against him, until it was too late and the older man had made it deeper.

* * *

After talking to Officer Ohgi and filling in his side of the police report, he was dismissed to go into his apartment to get some rest. He was given a copy of the report and was told that he'd be kept posted. Releasing a yawn, he fumbled with the keys before managing to get it into the lock. 

'Suzaku is probably still out with Gino, I'll just take my medicine and go to bed.' Opening the door, he reached over to turn on the light. Noticing Suzaku's boots on the ground, he dropped his bag alongside them as well as kicking off his shoes.  
As he turned to head into the kitchen, he tripped over another pair of shoes. He blinked for a few moments before looking up to be greeted with the sight of his roommate reclined in his chair with another male straddled over him and their lips locked in a deep kiss. Lelouch's mouth dropped open for a few seconds, taking the moment to process what was going on. He then closed his mouth, averting his gaze and walking into the kitchen. 

Opening up the fridge, he grabbed a bottle of water before moving over to the cabinet where he kept his medicine. 'Well I didn't know he swung that way.' Rolling his eyes at the others comment, he dropped two pills in his hand before downing them with water. 'Do you really want to be in here while they are getting it on?' Lelouch released a sigh before leaving the kitchen, heading back to the front door. "I'll find somewhere else to stay tonight, I didn't know you had company," he called, slipping his shoes on and grabbing his bag.

* * *

Feeling the intruding muscle moving inside his mouth was an entirely new feeling. He never went this far in a kiss before, but that was because all of his relationships were kept at a tame level. It was easy to convince himself that he had conservative morals than to explain why he was never comfortable with being alone with girls. Now was completely different but not better. He stayed frozen, unable to form a coherent thought as the other's eyes remained locked on his. Hearing the ruffle sound of shoes knocking around the tiled floor reminded him of his roommate by the entryway. Turning his head away from the kiss, Suzaku returned his green eyes to where he knew the younger man was watching. Feeling ashamed at having been caught in this situation, he averted his stare to the floor as a heated feeling spread across his cheeks.

"Ah! So this must be the cute young roommate, you were talking about!" Bismarck exclaimed as he rose from the kiss, but kept his grip on Suzaku's arm as well as pressing his other hand on his inner thigh, lifting his right leg slightly to drape over the armrest. Feeling the knee digging to the side made the detective realize the predicament he was in. Of course this was a misunderstanding, but how was he to explain any of this. "I would ask if you'd like to join in on the fun of tormenting this delectable brother of yours, but he seems to be a bit unresponsive at the moment. Perhaps if you give him some encouragement, he might stop acting like a virgin." Waldstein joked to see what response he can get out of them both. 

Suzaku looked up sharply in surprise and frustration before turning back to address his friend. "It's not what it looks like, Lelouch. This man just misunderstood what I said and insists on this game. Now if you both don't mind, I'd rather hit the hay for the night since this is way too uncomfortable. Oh and I'M NOT GAY!" he shouted as he continued to shove Waldstein off of him.

* * *

Lelouch was slipping his foot into his shoe when he heard the stranger comment about being brought up in a conversation between the two. He slowly turned, arching his eyebrow in question as to what point he was trying to make. "Cute?" Releasing a soft sigh, he pinched the bridge of his nose before rising from his crouched position and watching the scene play out before him. He was taking his time to process the 'situation' that the other seemed to be in, wondering how he had gotten into this in the first place. After some careful thinking, he realized the only possible explanation was that the older male had hard liquor in his system which made him incredibly ignorant to practically everything.

His eyebrow twitched in the remark of joining in on the torment and attempting to provide encouragement, lips turning into a frown at the arrogance the stranger was displaying. But he wasn't planning on making any moves until he heard from his roommate. He should at least be able to get it after it being put so bluntly right? When Suzaku finally reacted and started to struggle, he moved away from his position at the entrance and moved behind the business man. Reaching out, he yanked the stranger's arm behind him, keeping him locked in place as he dodged the free swinging hand only to grab and yank behind him as well.

"I believe my roommate has given off the wrong impression, he had a stressful day at work so I'm sorry if he gave off signals that were greatly misinterpreted. Now if you would please take your leave, it is rather late," he commented aloud as he dragged Bismarck to the front door. "Have a nice night, hope you return home safe." With that Lelouch pushed him out of the apartment, tossing his shoes out after him. Kicking the door shut, he flipped the lock on the dead bolt before locking the two regular locks. He then turned to face the older male, shaking his head.

"Honestly, can't you have the slightest common sense? For someone who is 26 you have the alcohol tolerance of an underage minor," he spoke aloud, irritation laced in his voice. He then picked his bag up from the ground, making his way into his room. "Now if YOU don't mind, I'd like some peace and quiet to get some sleep, I've had a long night." With that he slammed his bedroom door shut, locking it behind him. 

Normally he wouldn't get this annoyed with these situations, but he felt so drained, making him wonder if getting hit by the car did drain his energy by a lot. Sliding his pants off, he fell back onto his bed, turning on his dock stereo to let the music lull him to sleep.

* * *

Noting how easy it seemed for his younger friend to pull the older man off of him, Suzaku considered the amount of strength he must have had impeded due to the alcohol consumption earlier. If he were to run into a real mugger or even worse, the killer, he wouldn't stand a ghost of a chance in this state. While he'd dwell on his thoughts, he did notice how shabby and torn Lelouch's clothes had looked. They were soaked from the rain a few hours earlier and stained in shades of black, brown and maroon. Was that blood or mud? 

Startled by the sudden slam of the front door, he focused back of the present to see his roommate using the extra locks that were usually ignored. The detective could hear the pounding of the door coming from Waldstein on the other side, but choose to ignore it while Lelouch returned his harsh gaze back on him. Being chastised by the younger man about his alcohol tolerance and other such inabilities cause the twenty-six year old to lower his emerald green eyes back to the floor. Before he knew it, the lecture was over and the college student had retreated back into his den.

Hearing the loud music start up from the speakers once again signaled to the investigator that there would be no arguments to be had from them both tonight. Lelouch was beyond upset, whether it was caused by him or some other event after they parted ways at McDonald's was unknown to him. If he were coherent, Suzaku would have found it odd that Lelouch had actually stayed out later than the drunken cop. Looking to the alarm clock on the kitchen counter reminded him that it was well past 4:30. 

Gathering himself up from where he remained sprawled on the recliner, Suzaku retreated back to his own bedroom and uncharacteristically locked the door. He shed the buttoned vest he wore before pulling of the under shirt aw well. Lost in thought of how this night had unexpectedly played out, he reached down to remove his slacks before realizing the front was already pulled open and he had even lost a button in the process. Eyes widened at the find as a shiver raced along his spine once again. When had that happened? 

Sitting on the ledge of his mattress, green eyes stared absent-mindlessly at the wall in front of him as his mind played back those brief intimate moments back of the Lazy Boy in the living room. The fingers of his right hand ghosted over softly trembling lips at the remembrance of the sudden kiss. Although at the time it was unasked for, he couldn't say that it felt bad. It was probably the most passionate kiss he's ever received, but that didn't make the ache in his heart any better. What would have happened if Lelouch had arrived any later, or not at all? What if he didn't stay and had left somewhere else to sleep, like he intended? What if he never came at all? Suzaku's heart picked up its pace as he began to take deeper breaths of air. 

The music from the other room dulled down to his ears as images raced across his mind. Nothing but questions and possibilities occurred to the detective as he felt himself tense. The man hadn't been that strong, yet Suzaku couldn't force him off. What could that have meant? His eyes closed tightly in relief as he remembered Lelouch being able to come to his aid. How odd was it for the younger brother to save his elder? Recalling the look of shock and disappointment spread across Lelouch's face sent another jolt to the green-eyed man's heart. "I'm sorry", he had wanted to say, but those words never came out. Instead the young adult left him alone in the living room in frustration. 

"L-Le-Lelouch!" he panted out as tendrils of relief flooded through him. Opening his eyes again, Suzaku had found himself panting and gasping slightly for air while lying on his bed. His leg hung over the edge with his pants and boxers swinging against his knees. The sheets below him dampened lightly in sweat as this heat seem to be all around him. It wasn't until he regained his breath that he realized where his hand had been and the results of those actions glistened along the soft skin of his stomach. "...oh!" he quickly reached over to the discarded under shirt to wipe away any remains of the white fluid before placing his clean hand on his forehead, pushing back the loose strand of hair that dangled above his green eyes. "...but...but I'm not..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special Thanks to my best friend Ayame for helping me with this.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning, things tend to get a little more graphic as the chapters go on...

He hadn't known when he'd fallen asleep, but it sure wasn't one of his most restful nights. When his eyes had closed, all he saw was the dead body of a woman he'd considered his friend. And there standing above Euphie’s body was the person he'd created, the persona made of pure hatred and anguish. He knew he couldn't blame Zero, for in truth he'd be blaming himself. The sound of the male's alarm clock was subtle but enough to wake him up from the restlessness. Rubbing the sleepiness from his purple eyes, Lelouch sat up and turned to face his reflection in the body mirror that hung on his open closet door. 

Staring back was his disheveled reaction, evidence of restless night prominent on his face. "Don't you look pathetic," he spoke softly to himself. The pounding in his head had returned, causing him to run his fingers through his black locks. The clock read 7:00 a.m. which was his normal time to get ready and head out to school, however he came to a decision he'd go in a little late today, if even at all. 'Come now, don't let the death of a measly woman break you down.' A sigh passed through his lips as he pushed off the bed to head out to shower. 

Turning off the music that had played all through the night, he grabbed his towel from the rack on his door, unlocking it to be greeted by the sunlight peeking through the windows. Wincing in irritation, Lelouch kept his gaze down, glad his hair was long enough to shield his eyes. He didn't bother to check if his roommate was awake, knowing they weren't on the best of terms after last night. 'Granted he isn't the full reason of my irritation' The laughter in his head caused him to groan as he closed the bathroom door behind him. 

Shedding the tattered shirt and boxers, he allowed the warm water to envelope his body and cleanse the filth he felt that coated his body. With soap and a rag he scrubbed against his skin till it started turning red from being scratched at. 'Any harder and you'll make yourself bleed' Releasing a frustrated sigh, he watched the murky water go down the drain before lathering himself in more soap and shampoo. "I need to get this under control, I can't let myself slip otherwise we will be caught for sure," he spoke to himself, reaching to turn off the water. Ruffling the black locks dry, he tied the clean towel around his waist. 

"I guess I'll just dispose of this shirt and pants, they were my favorite pair too," he groaned as he exited the bathroom, taking the tattered shirt with him. Tossing the stained clothing into a bag, he dropped the towel to change into clean boxers and jeans. The cool air tickled against his damp torso and shoulders, allowing him to release a content sigh, running his hands over his shoulder. "I am in desperate need of coffee...." Picking up his bag he left at his doorway, he pulled out his laptop and carried it to the kitchen.

As he began to brew the coffee, he opened up his laptop and began to search through a few websites. 'And what do you think your doing?'

"Might consider going to see a counselor just to sort some stuff right in my head..."

'They will think your a nut job.' 

"No, I'm just a regular college student with worrying issues for the future and I need advice on some 'problems' in my life," he mumbled, rolling his eyes at the comment. Lelouch gripped his head, reaching into the medicine cabinet once more to take his medication.

* * *

The sound of water pressure running through the pipes in the walls screech loudly in Suzaku's ears, awakening him from the dreamless sleep of the night before. His eyes remains squeezed shut as he felt the crust of accumulated sleep dust crumble at the sudden restrictions. The sound continued its humming with no sign of stopping. The feeling of his pillow shoved against both ears did nothing to calm the storm brewing in his skull. His body ached in patched areas, especially his limbs. After what seemed like forever, the squeak of the faucets halted leaving the dull ache to stew in his brain. Knowing there was no going back to sleep from this point on, the detective chanced opening one eye. 

The dryness was more bothersome than before as he lifted himself to get off the bed only to fall roughly onto the floor. The pounding returned as he brought both of his hands to shield his sensitive nerves. "Why does everything hurt?!" he wanted to scream, but found his voice to tight and dry to form any audible sound other than the slight whimpers that made their way out. He considered staying on the rough, cold tile floor for a while, but more thumps seemed to vibrate from the floorboards just outside his room. Trying to remember what had caused him this pain was just adding more pressure to the already present throb in his head. 

He considered asking for help, before realizing he was lying stark naked on the ground. Where had his shorts gone? After hearing a soft knock on the door, he knew he would be faced with trouble unless he acted quick. "D-Don't worry, L-Lelouch! I just fell off the... the bed." he reassured before pushing his arms out beneath himself, to try to regain his composure. "All I need is a quick bath..." he summurized before reaching out to the shorts abandoned nearby. While pulling them on he noticed several bruises on this thighs and wrists before setting those questions aside to focus at the task at hand. He managed to find his footing before unlocking the door and heading out discreetly to the bathroom.

* * *

As Lelouch had waited for the coffee to finish brewing, he heard a series of thumps coming from behind his roommates door. He arched an eyebrow for a few moments, slowly walking over before tapping his knuckles at the door softly. Waiting a few moments, he heard the others response and simply shook his head. 'That dummy probably has a major hangover right now,' he thought to himself as he returned to check on the coffee. 

On his laptop he'd open at least 5 tabs researching psychiatry counselors that were nearby, credible and were a big key on confidentiality. 'If I talk, I won't be giving them too much but I certainly don't want them going around and blabbering what they should to people it doesn't concern,' he thought, shifting through the different tabs. In the background, he could hear the hungover male fumbling and making his way into the bathroom. Rolling his eyes, Lelouch continued to search through the information, weeding out the individuals he didn't deem fit.

Once he heard the shower running, he popped two of the large pills in his mouth and downed them with half the cup of his coffee. Last thing he needed was more questions and lecturing from Suzaku on how this medicine was bad for him and such. Yawning, he carried his cup and laptop into the living room, plopping down on the couch and setting the cup on the table. "I can't believe it's hard to find a credible person..." 

'What's wrong with not credible, if they take the wrong step we can just get rid of them...'

"Ok, I want help because getting rid of people isn't always the answer to everything..." 

After a few more minutes of searching, he finally found someone who fit the criteria yet also struck an interesting cord with him. "Diethard Ried....interesting" Lelouch scrolled through the information and scrolled through the pictures of the office area along with Diethard and his staff.

'You’re going to get counseled by a guy?' Pinching his brow, he slightly nodded. 

"Yes we are..." A small smile formed on his face as he reached for his cell phone and dialed the number listed below. He then headed outside to discuss the matter in a semi private standing, getting a few looks from individuals passing by noting that he was still shirtless.

"Psychiatric counseling services, this is Cecile Croomy how may I help you?" 

"Hello, I was looking through the website and I happened to notice you guys were well credible, so I called wondering how to book an appointment with Diethard Ried?"

"Will this be your first time visiting the office?"

"Yes it is."

"Ok, you will need to swing by to fill out some paperwork and we can get you situated as soon as possible."

"Perfect, I have some time today, I'll swing by." 

"Of course, do you need the address?" 

"No, its ok. I'll get it off the website."

"Alright, have a good day and we will see you soon." Hanging up the phone, Lelouch smiled to himself, wondering how things would go if he were to open up to someone.

* * *

The steaming hot water felt rough against his skin, but Suzaku could feel the tension slowly start to ease away. He scrubbed gently and mostly stood under the shower-head as to not jar his already ringing cranium. Once he felt he was clean enough, the detective turned the hot water off and allowed cooler water to drizzle the heat away. Carefully stepping out of the tub and onto the tiled floor, Suzaku pulled a towel out from the cabinet above and began to scrub his hair dry first. When he felt he was more or less dry, the brunette wrapped the damp towel around his waist before opening the doors and making his way out into the living room. 

He gazed around the apartment, wondering where Lelouch had gone off to before shrugging it off. He went back into his room to quickly get dressed in a clean pair of boxers and jeans hanging in the closet. After pulling on a light blue undershirt, Suzaku felt it was ok to open the door to his room wide again. His muscles were still a bit sore, but it wasn't something that could continue to impede him throughout the day anymore. The headache raging behind his ears, on the other hand, was another problem altogether. Deciding he'd rather not suffer any more time with it, Suzaku made his way over to the kitchen where he knew his roommate had kept the aspirin. 

"If these things are good enough for Lelouch's migraines, than a hangover cure seems optimal to me." he reasoned out loud before hearing the front door open once again. Grabbing the bottle from the spot he knew the younger man kept it, the twenty-six year old made his way over to the sink. "Hey, man, do you mind if I take one of your pills? I got a killer headache."

* * *

Lelouch slipped the phone into his pocket, slowly shutting the door behind him. He hear the others movements in the kitchen, he moved around the counter to hear the male call out to him. His eyes widened when he saw his medicine bottle in the others hand. "Uh...." He felt himself blank for a moment, this was the first time that Suzaku had actually asked to take one, all the while believing they were for the "migraines" that Lelouch would pass off the headaches when in reality they were to help him keep his touch with reality....if that was even possible.

Chewing on his bottom lip slightly, he reached out and took hold of the others wrist before sliding his hand up to grip the bottle. "I don't think you should. I'm not really big on getting on the case that they were prescribed for me but I know the side effects will be harsh on you, especially since you have a hangover and your stomach is empty and filled with acid...." With his free hand, he pulled out a bottle of medicine he'd bought for the occasion of when Suzaku drank too much. Granted it wasn't often but it was good to have it on hand.

"Here, this will serve you better." Placing the other bottle on the side of the sink, he slipped his medication from the others hand and let it drop in his pocket next to his cell phone. "Make sure you take them with water. You should also eat something, and I left coffee in the pot for you," he called, turning away from the other and heading back into the living room. 'So what would have happened if he took one?' 'Nothing really...but if they didn't work then I wouldn't want to give him a reason to look into what they are really for...' Closing his laptop, he started to pack his items into his bag.

* * *

Feeling the other's hand on his wrist had shivers run down his spine. Shaking the feeling off he gave Lelouch a questioning look before realizing the other was completely topless. Unable to focus on anything the younger man was saying, Suzaku noticed how although a bit thin, the college student did have a bit of toned muscle as well as near blemish free, soft looking skin. Realizing his thoughts were straying from the present, the detective averted his gaze to examine the new bottle of pills lying on the counter beside him. 

Playing it out that he was reading the warning label, Suzaku stole several more looks back at Lelouch while the other busied himself with preparing to leave. "G-going already?" he asked, curious as to what the other's plans were since he was clearly not going to be headed to school any time today. Almost meeting the eyes of his childhood friend, Suzaku sharply turned his eyes back to the water running in front of him, regretting the shake instantly. 

While rubbing his temple, the detective downed the bitter pills before noticing the slight bruising on his left wrist. It took a moment before the memories of last night flooded before his green eyes. The fun he had at the bar. The man who followed him home. Being pushed onto the recliner with his arm pinned and legs forced apart. The kiss. Lelouch's disappointed gaze. What he did on the bed afterwards. Ignoring the dull ache in his head, Suzaku tried to shake off the bright red he knew was spread across his face as his heart began to pound deeper in his chest. Casting a side-ways glance at his roommate, Suzaku couldn't help but to hold his breath.

* * *

Hmm, yeah I have some things I need to take care of. Hopefully they won't run to long and I won't be back to late," he called back, tossing the bottle of pills into his bag. 'Guess while I'm out I'll pick up another bottle...' Once he was sure he had everything packed he made his way back to his room to pull on a shirt and grab the bag of clothing he needed to dispose of. 'Just need to get rid of this and then I'll head over to meet Counselor Ried...' 

Tying the plastic to the side of his bag, he then picked up his cup of coffee, downing the rest in a few short gulps. Making his way back into the kitchen, Lelouch lightly placed his hand on Suzaku's shoulder to move around him to rinse out his cup. "I'll wash the dishes when I get home, so don't worry about it." It was then he noticed the bruise on the others wrist, making him frown. "You should really be more careful," he whispered, reaching out to touch it, his finger lightly tracing before he pulled his hand away.

"By the way, I'm sorry for snapping at you last night. I had a rough night and I took it out on you. Just please be more aware of your actions..." He chewed his bottom lip slightly, before a smile formed on his face. "I'll be going now, try to take it easy at work. If you need to, take the bottle with you to work." With that, he moved around his roommate to the front door. Sliding on his shoes, he opened up the front door. "Oh and make sure to drink lots of water, you look red, you must be dehydrated," he called out before closing the door behind him. 

Heading down the road, he allowed his eyes to scan his surroundings deciding on where would be the best place to get rid of his clothing. 'Should have done this earlier this morning...' 

"I'm still a little sore from being hit by a car in case you forgot, but don't worry, I always no how to get rid of things," he mumbled to himself, heading towards the deserted slums.

* * *

Feeling the pain in his head stay in a sort of rhythmic tone, Suzaku grabbed hold of the counter's edge to try to maintain his balance. An empty stomach did sound like a bad thing at the time. Perhaps he'll cook some eggs, if there were any left. Having Lelouch reach over him to place the dish back in the sink caused an involuntary response to tense up a bit. Looking down to see the younger man's hand upon where those few blemishes resided made Suzaku pull his hand away a bit quickly.

The sudden loss of support he had on the counter forced his knees to buckle a bit before he reached out to regain his balance. He didn't know what he was nervous about, but with his current state this was no time to be useless. "Sorry, I guess I should just avoid all alcoholic products for a while then." he apologized before he stood up properly and trotted his way to the couch on the other side of the counter. 

"Don't worry about me. If you feel like you are having a horrendous day than feel free to take it out on me. It's not like you're going to kill me, so I'd rather you do that than on yourself." he joked lightly before sitting on the cushion below. He figured he'd take a nap since he didn't have to be at work until later today.

* * *

Lelouch was making his way over to the clinic, following the address that was marked on his phone. It had taken him a while to dispose of the dirty clothes that had been stained in mud and blood. He'd needed to buy a new disposable lighter, setting the bag ablaze and left it to burn in a trashcan. He felt rather bad having to dispose more of his clothing. 'Sacrifices need to be made for our protection...'

"You make it sound like it’s so simple..."

Once he arrived at the clinic, he entered the lobby and was greeted by the receptionist. The nameplate on the desk indicated she was Cecile Croomy. "May I help you?"

"Yes, I called earlier and set up an appointment to meet with Diethard Ried. You said I should come in early to fill out some paperwork and some assessments." Cecile checked her records, before nodding and marking him as in. "Come with me and we will get you started with your assessments." They entered another room where a few computers resided, The receptionist asked him to take a seat and fill out the series of questions that would pop up on the screen.

After about 30 minutes of answering questions, he finally finished and rose from the seat. "Ok, let me just send the information to Mr. Ried and he will call you in shortly." As Lelouch waited in the lobby for a few moments, he was slowly coming to terms and relaxing his brain. "Lelouch, Diethard will see you now," called Cecile. Nodding, he stood and made his way into the office.

* * *

Bismarck Waldstein was slowly removing his business suit, article by article. After most of it was laid scattered upon the floor he took his red tie and wrapped it around Suzaku's neck. Suzaku kept absolutely still as he watched the one in front of him. The room surrounding them was cast in shadows with blurs of what could be furniture just out of eyesight. Rough hands pushed his shoulders back against the recliner as he felt the fabric of denim nudge against his legs. The other leaned his head closer to the detective's neck, sending a chill along his skin at the feel of soft hair against him. He didn't know why he wasn't resisting, but soon enough felt soft trickles of feathery kisses being pressed against tanned skin. 

"Wait!" he whispered before releasing a grunt of pain at the feel to teeth embedding into his flesh. There was a small drip of blood leaking from the new wound before the man leaned back to admire his work. "Why are you-" Suzaku gasped when light was softly cast upon them to reveal it was not the patron from the bar he had met earlier, but Lelouch kneeling on his lap. A grin was spread across the younger man's face as blood streamed lightly from the corner's of his lips. 

"Care for a taste, brother?" the college student asked humorously as he bent his head down to bring their lips together.  
Green eyes shot open as Suzaku rush up from where he had rested upon the couch. Sweat glistened across his forehead as a slight blush appeared once again for that day. He looked around to see if anyone else was in the apartment with him, only to note that he was alone in the dead silent building. He took several deep breaths before reaching out to his phone. The small screen informed him of it being close to noon. 

"Almost time for work." he commented as he reached for his jacket laying across the table. Grabbing his stuff he made his way over to the front door where his boots rested from the night before. "Why would I dream about him like that? Damn alcohol." the green-eyed man cursed as he made his way out of the apartment and to his car in the garage bellow. 

By the time he reached the office, his partner was already by the coffee machine chatting away to the secretary taking her break there. "Hey Suzaku! How was the party yesterday? Get laid?" Weinberg laughed not noticing his partner duck his head and turn away from the question all together. Gino left the break area to lounge by where their desks stood. "Come one, buddy! It's not like we've never experimented while drunk before." he reassured thinking that the investigator was ashamed about taking another man home with him. 

"Next time you see me not acknowledge someone else in a car with us, speak up!" the twenty-six year old gritted between his teeth as he sat down at his own desk. "You didn't help at all with this misunderstanding and it was embarrassing enough to have Lelouch intervene in this disaster!" Gino was taken aback by the other's response. A sudden hurt and guilty look spread across his face before it was quickly erased and replaced by a sly grin. 

"Well maybe next time you shouldn't flirt with every man who buys you a drink." he quipped.

* * *

Lelouch was sitting on the couch that was nicely placed along the wall, adjacent to the window. Sitting across from him was Diethard, who'd greeted him at the door with a smile that he had considered blinding as was surprised that he couldn't tell if it was genuine or fake. "Thank you for coming in Lelouch. I took a few moments to look over your assessment, but we will touch more on the subjects as we do the sessions." The younger male nodded slightly, his heart racing and he was already psyching himself out. 

"Now then, let's start off with a few basics. How come you decided to come in today?" He chewed on his bottom lip as he tried to analyze the question. 

'You should tell him that you got squeamish after killing Euphemia and you are here to seek much needed therapy,' came that mocking laugh in his head. Lelouch felt the annoyance rising in him, wondering how to start talking without giving away the darker parts. 

"...Well...I've been having a lot of identity issues..." The other male shifted his sitting position, the pen moving swiftly over the paper he had situated on the clipboard.

"And when did you start feeling like this?" He stared down at the hardwood floor, following the different lines that twisted and turned. 

"All my life I suppose." He could hear the sound of the pen against the paper, and he closed his eyes in hopes of blocking out the noise. 

"Alright, let's talk about your childhood..." 

"NO." Diethard looked up in surprise at the sudden outburst of the other male. 

"Um..." 

"I refuse to talk about my childhood, not yet. I don't trust you enough to talk about that with you. No one but me knows of my childhood and that's the way it will always be until I decide otherwise!" Diethard couldn't really object, nodding slightly before marking the childhood to be touched up on in later times.

"Alright, how are things with your life right now? Do you live on your own, or with a roommate?" 

Lelouch released a sigh, leaning back on the sofa. "I suppose my life is alright. It's bearable, being a college student is rather tough, I will eventually be applying in the job market. And I currently life with a friend of mine whom I'd met around my childhood times. We have a fairly stable living environment, the only times we usually interact is on weekends or in the middle of the night because he is a homicide detective."

Diethard nodded, writing down certain phrases the other male used. "And how would you explain your relationship with your roommate?" Lelouch arched an eyebrow. 

"What do you mean?" 

"I mean as far as your interactions go, any hostile moments, are they decent interactions? Do they interfere with any of your own personal needs?" He was taking a while to process what the other male was asking him. 

"If you are asking about my sex life, then you should just ask the question. I'm not squeamish on those topics. I am a grown male after all." 

The counselor shook his head, but smiled a bit. "I meant things you do on your own, routines, life choices, sex was an optional topic and would be brought up at your discretion." Lelouch allowed a smile to come to his lips, running his fingers through his hair. 

"My routines are generic, I sleep, wake up, go about my morning necessity of hygiene and go to school, then come home where my life repeats again. Now in terms of sex, I am not sexually active, and I don't have a partner at the moment. And whether my roommate goes about his daily life and if he should bring partners over, I respectfully maintain my distance. That is the respect we have." 

'Although lately, the partners that have been coming over were a result of his drunk escapades...' He then thought back to the time he got himself off. While embarrassed for almost getting caught, he had felt a sense of relief for it. He wouldn't deny being sexually frustrated, but he had morals. At the moment, he feared getting close enough to anyone because the sense of not having control scared him, but he knew what he wanted and his preference.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special Thanks to my best friend Ayame for helping me with this.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning, things tend to get a little more graphic as the chapters go on...

Suzaku spent most of the day in agitation towards his partner. Detective Weinberg chose to ignore what he called a "tantrum" and continued to find new ways to annoy his partner ranging from throwing paper airplanes at the other's back. Spreading random notes hidden in the folds of their paperwork. Leaving multiple cups of coffee scattered across his desk. He even forwarded all anonymous tips from hair-brained fanatics to the other's landline. 

Feeling another paper-wad land against his computer keyboard, Suzaku felt he was about to snap until Chief Jeremiah Gottwald burst out of his office. "I need several squad cars to 84th street and Trints, stat! There's been another body found. Weinberg! Kururugi! You both take the lead as this may be linked into the Black Knight Case." the green haired man ordered as several officers made beelines to the garage. The two gave each other a harsh look before joining the rest. 

"The Black Knight?" Suzaku questioned, still annoyed but not able to truly resent the other man. Gino laughed for a second before explaining that the headlines were finally confident enough to nickname their latest serial killer. 

"It was the Weekly Harold Online that actually coined the name sometime yesterday before any other journal copied." he continued as they drove down in Suzaku's old '67 Impala to the latest crime scene. After arriving to the address, they were quick to realize the construction site was in ruins with smoke still streaming from old ashes while the fire department made their rounds of the area. "So where's the body?" Weinberg asked one of the volunteers as the lower ranked cops set to work on securing the area in yellow police tape and blocking any unwanted reporters from snooping.

The building was burnt late last night between three to five-thirty when the yellow suited men were able to qualm the flames. After rummaging the area, a body was discovered under heavy ashes of plaster and debris. From the body structure, the forensic officer was able to determine it was a female victim whom has died a few hours before being set a flame. When the blonde detective had asked how they linked her to their case an assistant had pointed to the girls hands. Hidden in the palm of her ashen skin was a small piece of fabric, mostly chard, but just enough for very limited tests could be placed upon. 

"With the portable lab, we were able to identify one molecule found on the cloth so far. It appears to be a very minuscule dot of blood." the scientist explained as he adjusted his glasses. "Something so small that it would have come from a paper cut or pin prick. We wanted to be sure of anything before we called it in as a related link, so that's why we waited over thirteen hours. The blood found belonged to that of Rolo Lamperouge..."

* * *

Lelouch had been staring at the clock for a while now. He timed that it had been about an hour and fifteen minutes since the session started. It seemed like Diethard Ried always had something new to ask, or asked for elaboration on certain areas. 'Just remember that this was your brilliant idea,' he heard Zero bark in his head. Releasing a sigh, he shifted his position on the couch. "Alright, I believe we can put this to a conclusion for today. Do you feel the need to set up another appointment?"  
Finally turning his eyes away from the wall, the younger male took a moment to analyze the male once again. 'He seems genuinely interested, then again I wonder if he has ever had cases like me before?' Chewing on his bottom lip slightly, he pondered the response. "Sure...I'll set up an appointment for next week." He heard Zero yell and curse but chose to ignore it as he smiled at the other male. "Great, we'll set up an appointment at Ms. Croomy’s desk and I look forward to seeing you next week Lelouch." Diethard returned the smile of the younger male, taking hold of his hand in a polite shake before escorting him out of the room.

After he was done confirming his appointment with Cecile for next week, he exited the building and slowly made his way home. 'How can you go back? All that talking about emotional problems and need of self-discovery is a waste of time!' Lelouch rubbed his forehead as Zero went on and on of how it was a bad idea. "It will only be for a while, I know when to quit when things are looking too risky. So lay off, I'm exhausted..."

When he arrived back home, he unlocked the door and shut it behind him, lazily locking the top lock. "Man my head hurts..." Reaching into his bag, he pulled out his bottle of pills and popped two in his hand. Placing them back in the cabinet, he filled a nearby glass full of water and swallowed them down. "Try to keep it down for a while ok..." he mumbled to himself as he made his way to the couch, slumping onto it and closed his eyes, falling into sleep.

* * *

After having spent the remainder of the day as well as most of the evening at the newest crime scene, Suzaku tiredly made his way back to the police headquarters. After the link between the two latest victims was made, as small as it was, they took no stops in the process. The firemen had smothered every small flame that remained in the block before a barricade against any public contamination to take place. Once photos of the crime scene and surrounding area were taken with the corpse itself being a high point, the K-9 unites were brought in to find any other hidden evidence such as blood, clothe or even possible witnesses. While this was going on, the forensic scientists were allowed to being their portable lab closer to the crime scene to not waste any time on the decomposition to take place. By the time the sun had made its finale dip across the city-scape, their chief had called in all investigator squads for a debriefing on the current case. 

As the pulled into the building's garage, the two detectives made their way up to the proper floor quickly to the meeting room. Chief Gottwald introduced the already known major case in which Detective Weinberg and Kururugi were in charge of. Allowing the two to proceed, Gino took charge in all confidence. "This newest body had a very surprising result to this case. Found in her dainty hand was a piece of cloth, most likely taken from the killer, which had trace of blood from the previous victim, little Rolo Lamperouge. The only way it could have gotten there is obviously from the killer having used the same jacket during both murders. This is indeed another one done in by the Black Knight"

At this point Suzaku stood up with a folder of the freshly printed photos from earlier today. Displaying the best one taken of the body, he cleared his throat before continuing where his partner had left off. "This would be the sixth victim that we know of. The first being Clovis La Britannia found in Charleston Park. Followed by Kaguya Sumeragi placed in an alley. Jiang Lihua in the whole foods market. Last week’s recently identified Shirley Fenette found in the subway. Rolo Lamperouge we found a few days ago. And now this new girl. All of the previous victims had been chosen at random with only a few characteristics shared amongst them. They were all in their late teens to late twenties as well as were publicly available indicating that the killer had chosen targets who were single and able to respond to any lure his may have used. Most likely some sort of seduction. All except for this newest one." He pinched the bridge of his forehead to clear a small headache that had been growing there. "The picture shows the body of the newest mark. She was in her mid to late twenties and from the remnants of her clothing, has made us believe she was a grad-student of some type. As you can see from the facial expression left post-mortem, the victim was not only in fear but also surprise and confusion. This led us to believe that she knew the culprit. He could have been her boyfriend, or classmate or even family friend, but the point is, out of all other victims, she was not the intended target.” 

"Either she saw something she shouldn't or whatever, doesn't matter." Detective Weinberg cut in, taking over the rest of the briefing. "This can be said for sure! The man is getting sloppy!" After the small presentation, both partners listen in to the ideas being thrown in as well as the orders Chief Gottwald was directing.

By the time the moon was high in the sky, the dark haired man had made his way up the stairs to his apartment. As he opened the door, green eyes caught on the sight of his roommate dozing away on the couch. After locking the door, he made his way over to see if the younger man was really asleep or just lazing about. Seeing the peaceful face on the college student's face brought a small smile to his own. "It's been a while since I've seen him relaxed like this..." the thought before remembering the events of last night briefly. His brow creased slightly in thought before he leaned over the other and planted a chaste kiss on the sleeping man's forehead. He pulled the small cover draped over the armrest over Lelouch lightly before making his way to the kitchen to see what he can rummage together for dinner later.

* * *

Everything was dark, the silence gave off an eerie aura like being lost in a dark void to wait for your impending death. Lelouch's dreams usually consisted of this, the vast pitch black. At some times it was comforting due to his constant racing thoughts. However, in the distance, he could see a light starting to shine through the dark. This was something new, and he found himself starting to walk towards this strange ray of light.

After what seemed like forever, he found himself at the source of the light. A chill ran through him when he realized the beacon of light radiated from a house, his childhood home. "Oh god..." He could hear his heart pounding in his head. 'Guess I got to keep going...' He slowly opened the door, allowing it to swing open before taking a few cautious steps inside. It was exactly the way it had been before it was burned down. The expensive furniture and paintings were intact, reflecting the prestige life of those who lived inside.

"Prestige always seemed to be a mask for the pure evil that lurked behind..." he mumbled to himself, sadness reflecting in his eyes. A shrill scream erupted from the darkness, jerking him from the grief he felt. "What the hell?!" As he made his way up the stairs, his nose caught the scent of blood mixed with rusted iron. Covering his mouth, he took in the sight of his mother's dead body sprawled upon the open bedroom door.

'This is....' He then turned and raced down the hall to his father’s study, finding Charles’s dead body. His head had been bashed in with the blunt side of the paddle he used to have displayed on the desk. It now lay in a bloody pool on the ground. Lelouch took a step back before turning away and making his way to Guinevere’s room. Stopping at the closed door, he took a short breath before proceeding inside. 

He was greeted with the sight of his younger self mercilessly beating Guinevere with a metal bat that used to be stored in the basement. However,Lelouch knew too well how to get his hands on it since it had been used on him countless of times. Her pleas only seemed to fuel the blood lust in his younger version’s eyes, as the child brought the bat down upon her limbs, grinning at the sickening sound of bones cracking. When that was no longer enough, he pulled out the kitchen knife he had tucked in his shoe and drove it into his sister’s torso over and over.

The disgusting gurgle of Guinevere chocking on her own blood filled the room, before it was replaced by the young boy's maniacal laughter. Lelouch felt himself go numb at the sight of his younger self repeatedly stab the already dead body of Guinevere before he slowed. The boy slowly turned his head, eyes narrowed in a psychotic bliss as tears ran from them. "Hahaha.....i-it's over! We're...finally free....hahahahaha!" The boy then lunged at Lelouch, driving the knife into the male's abdominal.

Lelouch released a scream, sitting upright on the couch. His face was drenched in sweat, purple eyes frantically searching the room to take in his surroundings. He could hear the heartbeat in his head, shutting his eyes in pain as he reached down to touch his abdomen. "Ugh...what a nightmare..." The confounding laughter in his head didn't make him feel any better. 'Don't try to deny the bloodlust inside you' Releasing a ragged sigh, Lelouch allowed himself to fall back onto the couch, attempting to calm the racing of his heart.

* * *

Hearing the sound of a shrill scream, Suzaku jolted up only to hit his head on the ledge of the cabinet door that had rested above him. Cursing at the wooden object, the brunette brought a hand to where he knew a bruise might form to rub at it with his eyes squeezed shut in agitation. After a few seconds, he carefully avoided the cabinet to return his gaze back into the living room where his roommate appeared to be sitting up from the couch in panic. 

Getting the feeling it was a nightmare of some type, the detective made his way out of the kitchen before sitting on the coffee table edge near by the college student. "Feeling ok, champ?" he asked softly to not startle his closest friend. Those abnormal feelings he was getting around the younger man could wait. It wasn't often that Lelouch had a nightmare these days, but when he did they were usually horrible. 

After a brief exchange followed by eerie silence, Suzaku looked back over to the kitchen before an idea came to mind. "Look, we got jack shit in our food storage right now. How about the two of us go to the farmer's market down town before they close? It's been a while since the two of us actually done anything together and the night air is amazingly fresh right now. Perfect for clearing a head, right?" he offered, hopefully before standing up from where he sat and reaching out a hand to the younger man.  
After what had seemed to be forever to him, Lelouch's heart finally lowered to the normal rhythm as he began to slowly relax. Granted his head was pounding from the pain, but he was really good at concealing that sort of pain. He turned his head to meet his partner’s gaze. It was rather calming to find how much the older male cared about his wellbeing. It was a nice change from what he was used to, but it was also something he kept at bay on instinct.

At the other male's comment upon not having any food, he allowed a smile to form on his lips. "Then I guess we better start heading over," he replied after a while, reaching up and taking hold of the others hand. Allowing himself to be pulled up, Lelouch met the others stance before leaning forward and giving the roommate a hug. "Thanks for your concern. You are always there for me," he said, pulling away, childish smile spread on his face.

He then turned away, moving towards the front door. "I believe my paycheck from the school should already be cleared in my account so we have a good amount for food this time," he called, grabbing his wallet from the counter. Slipping on his shoes and jacket, he waited at the door for Suzaku. "Let's get a move on."

* * *

After the roommates grabbed their wallets and locked up the door to their apartment, Suzaku lead the way to the garage on the first floor to where he had parked his car. As they climbed in, he reminded the younger man to put on the seat belt before starting up the ford. Pulling out of the parkway and into the streets, the detective drove down the road to where he knew the farmer's market was located. 

During the thirty minute drive the two talked about Lelouch's school work as well as Suzaku's case. The older man had left out as much of the gory details as possible, but was interested to hear what the college medical student had to say on the matter. The trip should have been shorter, but there where many traffic delays from in between their home and the grocery store back in downtown. "Damn, is it the city's goal to make all this construction get in the way of everything?" Suzaku cursed annoyingly when they had to make another different turn to the building. 

After ten more minutes of road, the car pulled into the parking lot of the store. After finding a spot near the entrance, the two exited the car before making their way inside. It wasn't often that the two came to the local farmer's market with work and school getting in the way. The items here might have been a bit pricier, but it was better tasting and in good quality compared from the few times when money had been tight and Suzaku had to buy from a close by Walmart or even just drive-thru.  
"Hey remember that time when we ate nothing but McDonald's for a week?" the older man laughed as he looked through the fresh vegetables being displayed. "That was gross." As he examined the different varieties of eggplant being offered, a thought came to mind. Looking over to where the darker haired man stood, Suzaku nodded to what he was looking at. "Hey, how about Ratatouille for dinner tonight? Why don't you grab some white wine for the broth?" he asked before picking up a fat pod from the bunch.

* * *

Lelouch laughed at the comments of eating nothing but fast food. "Yes, it was rather disgusting. I think I had gained a good amount of weight due to that," he remarked, shivering in remembrance. He enjoyed being surrounded the vegetables, it gave a healthier aura than the junk food that they had recently been surrounded by. He looked up at the comment for white wine. “Sure, I’ll go get some.” 

Making his way over to the area that held the wines, he stopped in front of the shelf that had all the different selections. ‘Hmm…which one to take him?’ There were different variations, and he didn’t know a single thing about cooking. He always left that in Suzaku’s department, he had better luck than Lelouch ever did. Reaching up he retrieved two bottles from the rack, looking them over.

“Lelouch? Is that you?” Upon hearing his name, he looked up to see a young woman staring at him, eyes wide in shock yet were immediately wiped over with joy. “Wow! I can’t believe it’s you!” It only took him a few moments to register her and retrieve her name from memory. “Hey Milly, fancy meeting you here.” She slowly approached him, light smile on her face. “I know I can’t believe it either. I never took you as the type to get your items from the farmers market.” 

He offered a light laugh, smiling sheepishly. “In truth, we actually haven’t been here in a while. My roommate and I were out of supplies so we stopped by to buy some ingredients.” Milly cast a glance at the wines in his hand. “Celebrating something?” Shaking his head, he held the bottles up slightly. “No, he was planning on making a dish and asked me to get white wine. Turns out I don’t know squat about this stuff.” A laugh escaped her as she placed her hand on his arm. “The great Lelouch has encountered something he doesn’t know about?”

Arching an eyebrow slightly, he shook his head and shrugged. “Where are you getting ‘the great’ from?” 

“Oh come now, you are smart at what you do. That’s why you’re the lead for the medical program. Everyone looks up to you, and you are admired greatly.” She then looped her arm in his, big grin on her face. “But now I see you know nothing of cooking.” Lelouch’s face lightly tinted a darker color, averting his eyes to the ground. “Well excuse me for not knowing how to cook.”  
Milly chuckled before pulling a bottle away from him. “That one should suffice well for most pastas, light meats and vegetables. Make sure you remember that for the future.” He looked it over, a smile forming on his face. “I’ll make a note of that. Thanks.” She returned his smile with her own, placing the bottle back on the rack.

* * *

Gathering the rest of the ingredients was simple enough. He knew they had a baking dish and olive oil at home. Checking in his basket, the detective made a mental note. “Let’s see: eggplant, small green zucchini, salt, pepper, roma tomatoes, green olives, garlic, green onions, thyme, parsley, and….” Looking over at the isle across, Suzaku released a pleased smile as he pulled a bushel of fresh basil from the stands. All that was left was to get some greek olives and the white wine. 

Knowing his roommate had ran off to take care of the alcoholic portion of the recipe, the dark haired man went down to the aisle that held the foreign food section. Pulling a large can from the highest shelf, Suzaku read the label to check on the expiration date. He had grown up on canned goods as a child coming from a poor background. It wasn’t often that a person came across an expired can, but Suzaku wasn’t that lucky when he was a pre-teen. After the worst experience he could imagine, the man had never wanted to go through another week of food poisoning again and became very cautious when it came to buying cans.  
After placing the olives in the cart, Suzaku’s attention caught on the sound of shrill giggling. Curiosity getting the better of him green eyes peaked between the shelves to see what was happening on the other side. It was there that he saw his roommate with another girl. She was pretty and young with her arms locked around the younger mans. 

Suzaku’s heart raced as he realized what was happening. “Of course Lelouch would flirt with a girl his age. There’s nothing wrong with that.” He thought to himself as the scene played out. He couldn’t help but feel tense as the ditzy girl kept pressing herself closer and closer to his friend. Finally unable to convince himself otherwise, the detective made his way around the isle to where he knew the other was waiting. “Hey did you get the wine?” he asked, covering up his irrational side with a grin.

* * *

Lelouch looked up when he saw his roommate coming down the isle. "Hey Suzaku. Yeah I got the wine. My colleague Milly helped me pick a specific one." Milly offered a smile, lightly bowing. "Nice to meet you. So this is the roommate he talks about." He chuckles slightly before placing the wine bottle in the cart. "Sorry, I was taking too long. We ran into each other and were discussing these wines. I apparently have no knowledge of this stuff at all."

Milly giggled before turning to Suzaku. "What's it like having Lelouch for a roommate? Is he super precise for things? He can be pretty stuck up on certain things back at the campus. People are usually afraid to ask him questions because he is referred to be so 'highly up there' that it would seem that he looks down on people." Lelouch shook his head. "I don't look down on people, sometimes they do have valid questions but on other times it is just them overlooking the simplest of things."

She lightly bumped against him, sticking her tongue out at him. "Well I'll let you two go then, I'm sure you have cooking to get to. It was really nice to meet you Suzaku." She then turned to Lelouch and gave him a quick hug. "If you ever want to, I'll bring you some food with their recipes so you can take home, that way it'll broaden your knowledge of cooking." 

"Uh, sure." 

"Great! I'll see you around then!" With a smile she waved at them before walking off. 

Lelouch simply smiled and shook his head. "She is so full of energy. Sometimes I don't know where she gets it." He then turned his attention back to Suzaku. "So is there anything else we need?"

* * *

Suzaku watched the two in bemused annoyance. It wasn't every day that he saw his roommate interact with other people their age, so this sudden talkativeness was a bit perturbing. As the girl made obvious flirtatious gestures, the detective had to suppress his urge to question her motives and tried to calm down by taking a deep breath. 

When Milly turned her inquisitive gaze on him, the brunette looked to both sides of him before taking a step back at her closeness. Not used to girls being upfront was one thing, but this felt like a total lack of personal space and privacy. Rubbing the back of his neck with his right hand, Suzaku held out his left in a sort of mercy gesture. "Well, I wouldn't say that, but he does get upset when I leave things around the house."

Feeling relieved at the girl's distraction by Lelouch's comments, Suzaku decided it was best to be on the opposite side of the shopping cart to both examine the bottle his roommate had chosen and to get away from the female chatterbox. The vintage was a good selection, but he didn't feel like the alcohol content was quite right. "Twenty-seven percent for a simple simmer? We might get a little tipsy on that..." he thought as the idea of drinking any more than necessary was reminiscent to his hangover earlier this morning. 

Catching sight of the small woman giving his friend a tight squeeze, green eyes looked away quickly. Biting his lip in order to prevent himself from saying anything that might be misunderstood, Suzaku shock his head at such thoughts. As soon as the college student was gone, he turned his gaze back to his messy haired partner. "So.... would you prefer her cooking for you now?" he found himself suddenly blurting out. Releasing a sigh at the anxious feeling in his chest, the older man pushed the cart to where the cashier area was at.

* * *

Lelouch stared at the older male for a moment, tilting his head slightly. 'What did he mean by that?' He watched his movements for a while, trying to figure out what had brought that type of comment. 'Maybe he's jealous.' He blinked at the thought. 'Jealous? Of what?' 'That girl who wouldn't shut her mouth for more than 2 minutes.' He took a few moments to think that over, shaking his head before quickening his pace to catch up with the male.

"In regards to your comment, no. I wouldn't prefer her to cook for me, if memory serves her taste palette is more light and sweet. That may be good for some things but not all the time. I like to think that I have a more precise taste, which I have you to thank for. You spoil me with good food that I now have high expectations for all the things I eat." He smiled, bumping his shoulder against the others. "So in a way, I think I'll only have preference for your cooking. It's not like she'll ever find me on campus anyway. My lab hours are going to change starting next week."

Once they got to the front of the line, he started to unload all the items onto the stand. He looked over each item, his smile broadening with each item. "Wow you picked out a lot of good things! I'm looking forward to the meal already, let's hope I don't burn anything if you ask me for help, it would be a major shame," he said with a laugh. Once all the items were loaded, he reached into his wallet and pulled out his card. "Here, since we took the car, I can pay for the food. We should have enough to last us for when we need to come back."

* * *

Feeling the bump against his shoulder, Suzaku couldn't help but to turn his gaze back to the younger man. Seeing Lelouch chide him over his earlier comment, Suzaku couldn't help the light smile that crossed his features. "Spoiled brat." he chuckled lightly before coming to a stop at the next register. After he allowed his roommate to pay for the food items they had wanted, the detective offered to carry all of the bags while they made their way back to his car. 

After packing the groceries into the trunk he turned his emerald eyes back to the car keys that were in his pocket. Whistling to the other, Suzaku tossed him the keys before making his way over to the passenger side door. "Why don't you drive us home?" he offered before opening the door and getting inside. "Just don't scratch up my baby, got it?" he joked.

As they drove, Suzaku couldn't stop his curiosity from getting the better of him. "So that girl... is she the kind of girl you would.... like to date? I mean it's not often I see you talk like that." After a few more awkward conversations, the two made their way back into the apartment. Once in the kitchen Suzaku set to work on preparing the meal asking Lelouch to help him peel and chop vegetables since it would take a while for the thing to bake.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special Thanks to my best friend Ayame for helping me with this.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning, things tend to get a little more graphic as the chapters go on...

Chapter 7

The young male simply ignored the comment the older male made while he was paying for the items. 'Says the male who spoils me beyond belief.' After retrieving his card and receipt he followed behind the male to the car. At the comment to drive, he could feel the excitement rushing inside him. He knew how to drive but he didn't do it often. It was easier for him to scout individuals when he was on foot, also he counted it as exercise. 

Though it didn't stop him from being slightly nervous during the ride. He knew how much Suzaku cared for the car, especially since it was his only car. Memory served that he'd had that car with him for some time, and usually drove when necessary, other times he'd ride in the cop car or carpool with Gino. Lelouch was brought out of his thoughts at the mention of the girl back at the market. He blinked in surprise at the question of dating someone like her. 

'I figured he was jealous. Emotions are so easily read on people.' Chewing on his bottom lip slightly, he pondered how he was going to respond to that. "To date? I'm not really sure. Milly is smart and good in her field of work but I can't really say she'd be my type. I haven't really known her for very long so I wouldn't jump right into going out with her. Besides, my interests lie in a more distinguished age group I suppose." 

'It just so happens that the younger ones are easier to lure in and more ignorant.' 'Yeah...but I won't say that out loud.'  
After everything was inside, Lelouch began with washing his hands and the items to peel. His back was to the older male, as he began to peel the vegetables. "So what about you? I normally wouldn't ask especially with what happened last night. But what is the type of person you'd date? Since you are so curious about my type I feel it’s only fair I know yours," he chided with a smirk.

* * *

Not expecting the sudden inquiry, Suzaku's head shot up at the mention of last night. Memories of what happened glance over his mind for a bit causing a tinge of red to spring to his cheeks. "M-My type?" he repeated hesitantly, before turning his gaze over to where his roommate had been. Unable to see the other's face, the detective returned his attention back to the roasting garlic and onions in the sauté pan in front of him. 

Thinking hard on how to respond, the taller man figured it would be better to just say the truth. "Well... to be honest. I don't think I have one." Clearing his throat, he poured the remaining olive oil into the pan before continuing. "I mean, there have been a few girls I dated in the past... but they were all different and short-term. I guess I just never really thought about...” trailing off, Suzaku looked over to what was ready to add in. Taking the chopped eggplant he placed it in the simmering pan before covering the dish with a lid and wondering over to the fridge. Taking out a bottle of soda pop, he looked at his roommate. "Sorry I can't be clearer."

* * *

Lelouch listened to the others explanation to the question he had given him. He couldn't help but smile to himself at the flustered mess of a response he was given. He knew full well that it wasn't the best topic that the other would be good at describing, especially since it was something he probably never really thought about. After all, he would spend more time at work rather than out and about. Once he was chopping the remaining items, he set the knife down, turning to face the other. 

"I guess you answered it to the best of your ability." Walking past him, he pulled out a glass and began to fill it with ice and water. "When you are able to clear up the large amount of cases that keep piling up, maybe you'll find someone you find interesting." Taking a sip of his water, he stared down at the ground. "Maybe I should consider looking for someone. I'm pretty secluded with school and work, maybe it’s about time I put myself out there and started mingling. Would be better than keeping myself cooped up all alone," he spoke, shrugging his shoulders lightly. 

'You do know that it is just another liability.' 

'Yes, but at least it will give me a sense of having some sort of release. I am human after all, and I do have urges.' 

'Yeah, last time you left that all over the coffee table.' Lelouch nearly choked on his water, setting it down next to him and smacking his hand against his head. He could feel the redness in his face begin to spread while the other just laughed in his head.

* * *

He was going to agree on the thought of work getting in the way, but there was no real way to repeat it. Hearing the choking sound next to him, Suzaku reached over and held onto Lelouch's shoulders while patting his back lightly. "You okay there, kiddo?" he asked lightly concerned while the younger man coughed up the water that he had been drinking earlier. 

After reaching the sink, Suzaku was going to ask again, until he saw the large smiled seemingly glued on his roommate's face. "He's laughing?" he thought. Confused as to why he would laugh, Suzaku thought back to their earlier topic. He stood away for a bit slightly appalled at the notion that perhaps Lelouch was still thinking on their little adventure last night. "Yo-you do know I didn't mean for any of that to happen right?" he stammered as the tinge reappeared on his cheeks. Sure it was slightly amusing, but for his childhood friend to be this chocked up at the memory was plain rude. "I'm not.... Whatever." he steamed at the thought before returning to the stove, dismissing the conversation entirely. 

After blending in all the food in the pan, Suzaku poured everything in a casserole dish while pouring the white wine over the mixture and covering in light powders of grated cheese. He finished off the item by placing it in the hot oven and leaving a timer before leaving the kitchen to turn on the TV. "It wasn't that funny..." he murmured before slouching in the couch, avoiding the recliner entirely.

* * *

Once the small waves of laughter finally settled and he managed to clear his throat of the water that choked him. "Yeah I'm fine," he replied in a raspy voice. Pushing his hair back, he looked over at the other in question. "What didn't mean to happen?" He arched an eyebrow at the others defensiveness. Watching the other male turn away from him, tending to the food before heading to the living room. 'I still don't know what he is talking about...' 

Lelouch poked his head over the counter to watch the other for a moment. 'He's not what?' Chewing his bottom lip slightly, he couldn't help the curiosity plus the need to tease the other rise up. Moving from the kitchen, he made his way into the living room, sitting on the coffee table in front of the other. Reaching over, he took the remote from the others hand and placed it aside. "You seem to be having a problem with what happened last night. I get it, it was rather odd, but you seem to be making such disdained comments. It makes me wonder if you harbor ill willed feelings towards individuals with that preference."  
Lelouch then leaned closer to the older male, a smile forming on his lips. "Or is it that you are more disdained that I was the one who caught you? I don't judge you, if you aren't then it’s respectable. But I must say, I was rather shocked and disappointed that if you were curious about it that you didn't come to me. I'd be able to help you out better than some stranger."

* * *

Annoyed by having the remote removed from his hand before he could find the right channel, he turned his gaze over to the young man sitting next to him on the coffee table. "You're going to break that." he mentioned before inching closer into the cushion as Lelouch leaned closer. He felt his mouth go dry as he listened to the other's taunt. Was Lelouch being serious? 

Green eyes locked onto amethyst as Suzaku swallowed the air in his breath. "S-se..." he tried to speak, but the words would only come out as whispers. His eyes trailed down to where the other's lips as they held the grin. Unable to think, the detective felt sweat break out on his forehead as his heart hammered more blood into his face. Leaving his mind behind, Suzaku reached out his left hand to caress through the back of Lelouch's head and through his long black locks, before reaching forward to clash their lips together. 

He closed his eyes at the feel of soft skin against him, before realizing what he had initiated. As the world seemed to return to him, Suzaku felt his breath run out as an ache was felt in his chest. Being separated from the other by a punch, Suzaku bent down to try to catch his breath, his eyes closing in disbelief.

* * *

Lelouch blinked to register what had just happened. One moment he was sitting in front of Suzaku, teasing him about the night prior, the next moment their lips were locked in a clumsy yet desperate kiss and then the final moment, he was standing over Suzaku, who was lying on the ground gasping for air. It had all happened so fast, he had a hard time registering what actually went on. 

It was odd for Suzaku to fall to his chides, even more so to initiate into something intimate. Hadn't he said earlier that they should stop talking about it? He had expected the other to brush him off. But instead of that, he'd responded with a kiss. While that normally wasn't bad, it had a different meaning to Lelouch. While he was used to seducing his victims to follow him before it progressed to small intimate moment, he would drive some sort of blade into them which rendered them helpless. But in this case, he held nothing so his bare fist sufficed in rendering the other immobile.

'Whoops, guess that was a really bad reflex, heh.' Lelouch paled, before kneeling beside the other. "Oh god....I am so sorry Suzaku...." Panic flooded him as he rushed to get the other a glass of water. Placing it on the small table, he touched the others knees to stray from touching his area of pain. "It's a reflex... these weird people have tried to come on to me before....so....since I wasn't expecting it....I sort of reacted...." He reached up to touch his lips, his face lightly turning red. "It's not like it was bad...." 

He then moved up from his crouching position, turning away from him. "I'll give you some time to gather yourself....I really am sorry for that.....don't think badly of me...." he spoke, eyes downcast before he rushed to his room, slamming the door behind him. Leaning against it, he released a sigh, closing his eyes. 'Quite the commotion over a little kiss.' Lelouch simply shook his head, not in the mood for Zero’s quips. 'Your flustered reactions are quite amusing. Haven't seen that response to a kiss before.' He could feel his face turning red, as he slowly ran his tongue over his lips.

* * *

Coughing with every breath he tried to keep in his lungs, Suzaku rolled onto his back as he tried to find something to hold on to. He focused more on the pain at getting all air knocked out of him, as his mind race to figure out why this had happened. Lelouch had been teasing him, of course he didn't mean it. Biting back the ache he felt, the brunette opened one green eye to gaze at where Lelouch had knelt by him worriedly. "Can't take a joke, can you?" he managed to gasp out before leaning his head back against the floor and closing his eyes.

Feeling a hand on his knee, Suzaku flinched slightly before remembering what explanation had been given. They were just friends. Nothing more than brothers. It was his own fault for being so curious. "Yeah, that's all it was. Curiosity. That dream and the events of yesterday just confused me." he rationalized in his head as his roommate ran off to the kitchen. 

Hearing the slam of glass against wood, Suzaku opened his gaze to catch the look of concern the other had shown. He could see faint traces of a blush appearing on the boy's face before he ran into his own bedroom. Using the ledge of the coffee table to help himself up, Suzaku leaned against the base of the couch as he reached for the glass offered. Taking slow sips, the detective cursed his foolishness. 

Time ticked by as he regained control of his breathing. His ribs felt sore as his intake of deep breaths rubbed against them. Hearing the ding of the timer, the detective pulled himself to his feet carefully before he slouched over to Lelouch's door. "Dinner's ready." he called as he gave a few knocks. Making his way into the kitchen, his left hand reached out to turn off the oven while the other opened the door. After placing the hot dish to rest on the stove top, he reached out to the cupboard for the dishes, lost in thought.

* * *

Lelouch sat in his room, back braced against the wall. What was supposed to happen now? It was as if he'd stepped into unknown turf which was a first because he was always prepared for every situation. Reaching up to touch his lips, he stopped himself and shook his head. 'Can't take a joke.' That was all he heard in his head. While he was in the wrong, so was the other. Releasing a frustrated sigh, he leaned to the side to collapse on his bed.

A few moments later he heard the knock on his door, along with the call for the food being ready. Grimacing lightly, he got up from his bed and exited to the kitchen. The older male's back was to him as he was getting the dishes from the top. Moving around the other, he refilled his own glass with water before reaching up to grab the extra plate from the male's hands. "God, you are so slow." He then reached over to scoop the food into his plate. Paying no mind to presentation, he poured his fill before placing the spoon back in.

Picking up his water to balance in his hands, Lelouch moved away from the other. "I'm eating in my room," he merely said before making his way to the room and kicked the door closed behind him. Settling back on the bed, he proceeded to shovel the food into his mouth. It was delicious just like he imagined, but other things were keeping him from enjoying it to the fullest. 'I need to get out of here for now.' 

'Oh? Are we going to have some real fun now?' Zero whispered excitedly.

'Maybe....depends on what we find....'

Once done eating, Lelouch packed his phone and wallet in his pockets before picking up his bag with the necessary items he usually needed for his daily roams. Exiting the room with the empty plate, he placed it in the sink, rinsing off the sauce and quickly washed them. Once done, he made his way to the front door. "I'm going out," he called curtly, slipping his shoes. Without another word, he rushed out of the house, slamming the door behind him.

* * *

Ignoring the comment the other made, Suzaku placed his plate on the counter by the stove to retrieve the soda-pop he had opened a while back. "It's not like I can make much movements after those bruises you left on my lungs." he snarked before taking the spoon to pour himself some of the ratatouille. As Lelouch made his way to his room to eat, Suzaku in turned placed his food at the bar. He didn't feel like walking far and choose to eat in silence. 

Lost in thought on why things went sour, the detective was drawn out of his thoughts many minutes later at the sound of his roommate announcing his departure for the night. "Be careful." he muttered out of habit, but refused to spare a glance this time. Lelouch was old enough to take care of himself. He proved that almost an hour ago in the living room. Not thinking about why Lelouch would know how to disarm a person, he focused his thoughts back to the food on his plate. 

Hearing the sound of a scream caught the twenty-six year old's attention as he turned around to face the television. On the screen was a young blonde man running down a dark hallway. "A horror movie?" he wondered as he watched what played out. The man looked afraid before coming face to face with a taller, red-haired figure. The new person grinned to reveal fangs before latching onto the blonde's neck. "Vampire flick?" 

He continued to eat as the screen blacked out only to open once more with the man waking up on a bed naked. He looked disoriented as the other approached to leave kisses on his chest. After a few more minutes, the detective gave an exasperated sigh before walking over to the coffee table to retrieve the remote that was discarded there. He turned off the electric box, not in the mood to watch a porno. Having lost his appetite, Suzaku threw away what was left on his plate before calling it a night and heading into his room. He didn't care to close the door as he pulled off his shirt and dropping hard onto the mattress before him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special Thanks to my best friend Ayame for helping me with this.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning, things tend to get a little more graphic as the chapters go on...

The fresh air outside had settled to a nice chill now that the sun had departed. The wind suffices blowing the cold air around him, one of the only ones who seemed to be walking on the streets. 'Guess people are getting smart.' 

"Or it must be that it’s so late and you just need to know where to look." Wandering the streets for a few more minutes, he finally found the perfect location. A staircase led down to an underground club that was quite popular. Lelouch had heard about this particular location some time back, but rarely made appearances for fear of being noticed. 

Disheveling his hair slightly, it concealed his eyes better before heading downstairs. The smell of smoke and musk assaulted his nose, taking him a moment to adjust. If he could describe the scenery in one word, he would settle on orgy. Moving across the mesh of bodies pressed against each other, he settled on a seat at the bar. "Let me have a whiskey," he called out, lazily watching the people grind against one another. 

Lelouch would have found it more entertaining to get involved with the crowd of people but he was still rather peeved about the scenario prior. He never had that type of reaction when people would kiss him, then again it was just to get their guards down. 'I probably am just craving some sort of release,' he tried to conclude in his mind. Mindlessly twirling the cubes in the glass, he failed to notice the figure coming up behind him. "Hey there. Why don't you come have a dance with me?" Turning his head, he took in the looks of the other.

The person standing there in front of him was a male, possibly close to middle 30's with dark blonde hair and bright blue-green eyes. He was what Lelouch deemed a pretty boy and was more than sure that the other guy knew it also. "Oh, and what is going to happen after the dance?" The blonde smiled at the question, reaching over to retrieve the glass from Lelouch's hand. "For you gorgeous, anything," came a purr against his ear. He couldn't stop the smirk forming on his lips as he slid off his chair and followed the man into the crowd.

* * *

Large white clouds rolled over the clear sky as a gentle breeze settled on the ground. The sound of leaves rustling along with the racing of water nearby held a calmness in the atmosphere. Emerald eyes remained focused on the fluffy puffs above as he tried to make out the images above. Suzaku laid on the grass enjoying the calm. Hearing the sound of rustling grass, the young boy looked up to see other kids playing in the park. It wasn't the kids that grabbed his attention, as it was a smaller boy, around the age of four, taking a seat next to him. Rubbing his left eye as he sat up, he examined the other. Green eyes caught on amethyst as the kid seemed to smile lightly. "Hi." he said while reaching out his hand for the other to take.

What seemed like hours rolled by as the two children played games and got to know each other. As Lelouch ran into the field to hide, Suzaku closed his eyes as he leaned his forehead against a tree. Turning around the eight year old smiled to himself as he searched out for his new friend. Coming across a bush he peaked through the leaves to see the younger boy with his back turned to him. 

"Looks like you found me..." the sky turned dark as Suzaku looked back up to notice the clouds storming together as frost began to fall. He turned his gaze back to his friend only to see the four year old was replaced by a teenager. Lelouch's eyes held a haunted look as he stared at the older male. 

"Lelouch?" he questioned as he took a step back. The teen gave off an eerie laugh as he approached. "Can't take a joke, can you?" he smiled as the dark haired boy pulled a knife out from his pocket.

Suzaku opened his eyes as sweat dripped down his back. He looked around his room to see the alarm clock by the bedside table blaring it was six in the morning. He placed his hand to his forehead as he thought back to the dream. It was leaving a very uncomfortable feeling his throat, prompting the detective to get up from his bed and head to the kitchen.

* * *

He couldn't stop running. It was in all the desperation that he needed to get back to the apartment. Not for a particular reason, but he felt like he was beginning to lose more grip of the reality around him. He needed the seclusion of his room, the comforting darkness to lull him to sleep. That was all he wanted, all he craved. Especially after what had happened...

After following Kewell into the crowd, they'd danced and drunk a decent fill, enough to get the other one to be tipsy enough to beg for departure. Getting out of that sweaty mess of a club was the best thing that had happened; Lelouch finally felt like he could breathe. However, he had to deal with a drunken partner who was desperate to jump his bones. Without any other selection to be made, Lelouch was yanked into an abandoned walkway near the river.

It was rather obvious that it was used for quick sexual locations due to the discarded contraceptives, making his stomach turn in disgust. Though it was the desire for affections that made them all the more vulnerable to the attack. The older male tore open Lelouch’s shirt and attacked his neck with bites and nips. Holding back his voice, Lelouch shut his eyes and mentally stilled himself, waiting out till the perfect time.

It wasn't until Kewell was on his knees, attempting to initiate an erection from the other with fellatio that Lelouch finally reached his limit and kneed him right in the diaphragm. Once Kewell was down, he reached into his bag and pulled out his dagger. "Sorry about that. You are rather fun to play with but if there's one thing you should know, I only get hard when people are begging for their life," he commented, eyes narrowing in sadistic delight. 

Jabbing the blade deep into the diaphragm, he simply laughed at the gurgled noises of blood and saliva chocking up in Kewell’s throat. "That's right, just like that," Zero purred, stabbing him again. This carried on for a few moments until the sweet sounds of pain slowly died along with the victim. Zero released an annoyed noise, lifting himself from the body. "Well that was pretty fast. Guess some people can't take the hard play." Cleaning up his blade, he tossed it back in his bag before moving the body over to the river. "You are pretty hollowed out now, so you should float," he murmured, dumping the body of Kewell Soresi into the water. Watching it sink to the bottom, he simply shrugged his shoulders. "Or not."

And now here he was, rushing back home. Desperate for some peace and quiet, too tired to care about what else should happen. The cold air was hitting his skin, it was wet from the water he'd dumped on himself to wash off the splattered blood. His clothes were soaked at the top of his pants. Though he was still disheveled as the force from earlier had ripped at his buttons. But that didn't matter. Finally reaching the safe haven of the apartment, he fumbled with his keys before making his way inside, slamming the door shut behind him.

* * *

Hearing the front door slam, Suzaku turned his gaze to see his roommate had returned home. Catching sight of the disheveled appearance the other's clothes the drenching of his black hair made the detective rush over to the other. He dropped the bottle of soda he had in his hand as he felt a pit in his stomach sink. Seeing the water dripping off the college student's tattered jacket pool on the floorboards beneath seem to grow darker in a tinge of red, placed the brown haired man into overdrive.

"Lelouch!" he shouted as he approached taking a discarded dishtowel left near the entrance of the kitchen he placed it on the other's damp head. On autopilot, he examined the younger man to see where the blood was coming from. "What happened?" he questioned before finding dark marks scattered all over his friends chest, each in different shades of red and purple drawing lower and lower. 

Feeling his heart stop, Suzaku pulled Lelouch closer into a firm hug. "I shouldn't have let you leave... who did this? Who hurt you?"

* * *

Lelouch blinked in surprise to see the other standing in the kitchen. It was early, he assumed he would have either been asleep or gone already. In the next moment, Suzaku was in front of him, draping a dishtowel over his head while examining him. "Suzaku?" He felt like a numb figure standing there, which was odd for him. Normally he didn't care or show any emotions related to killing. But for some reason since the murder of Euphie, he seemed to question a lot of things.

"Oh...I had a scuffle with someone..." He was stopped at the other pulling him into a hug. It threw him for a loop. Normally they never really showed physical comfort for one another, it was on really rare occasions. However, lately it seemed that Lelouch always wound up showing the more unfortunate side which was a first for him due to the lack of comfort when he was growing up. Somehow the other always knew how to make him feel better. 

"I'm ok...really. I had gone out to drink and clear my head a bit. Wound up drinking too much and some guy I met at the bar kinda stuck around me. However when I started heading home, he followed me and before I knew it I was pinned to the wall and he was trying to have his way with me. I manage to get away, course while running I got soaked by some water puddles as cars drove by." He rested his head on the others shoulder, closing his eyes. "Guess I shouldn't get after you for negligence when drinking. I guess I let my guard down too much, huh? Was pretty stupid of me."

* * *

As he held the younger man close, Suzaku listened to the explanation given. As the words flowed right into his ear, anger coursed its way through the detective’s veins. Taking the time to see Lelouch's appearance more closely from behind, he noticed the bright red marks littered across his neck and scratches along his back. 

He allowed the other to rest his head on his shoulder for a few minutes before pulling away to look at the other's tired looking eyes. "Lelouch, listen close." he began. "This is not okay. What that man did is unforgivable and I will find him and bring his to justice." He took the other by the shoulders and carefully led him to the bar to sit on one of the stools. After removing the soaking dishcloth from the other's hair he threw it into the sink before walking over to the medicine cabinet to pull out a first aid kit. 

Not knowing what else to say, he helped the college student remove the ruined jacket and shirt to see what damage was done. Looking hard at the scratch marks on his roommate's lower back had the detective curse. "This might sting a bit." he warned as he kneeled down to apply alcohol on a cotton ball before pressing it as lightly as he could against the scratches. 

With the other's shirt fully removed it was easy for Suzaku to see what those marks truly were. Taking a deep breath he looked back up from where he knelt to catch the younger man's eyes focused on him. "Lelouch.... You're going to need to make a formal report." he wanted to whisper, but tried to keep calm from the anger and sadness he felt. "The sooner the better... Did he...?" hesitating to find the words, green eyes looked back to the hem of Lelouch's jeans waistline where he could see the beginnings of a bruise peeking out. 

"Can you..." taking a deep breath, Suzaku kept his composure. "... Can you remove your pants for me? I know it might be uncomfortable right now, but I need to check on where else you are injured... unless you would rather a nurse do this part at the station."

* * *

Lelouch sat there on the stool, allowing his clothing to be removed piece by piece. The others worried expression seemed to fascinate him. Suzaku was fully committed to helping out individuals, especially him. The detective suited his field quite well. Keeping his eyes down at the ground, he hardly made a movement at the mention of bringing him to justice. 'You'll probably find him later today in the river,' he thought to himself. The feeling of alcohol against the scratches did bring some response to his face though.

It was almost as if it really did hurt, which was odd. Everything seemed to be flip sided which made no sense. Blinking a few times, he found himself staring down at the older male once again. "Formal report? I hardly remember what the guy looks like. I am still out of it, and I think I'm more than happy I got away." Lelouch released a sigh, before arching an eyebrow at the semi question. "Did he what?" Upon looking down, he realized the other was looking at his pants.

At the request to remove his pants, he felt his eyes widen. "H-he didn't! NO, he didn't rape me! I didn't give him the chance to, by that time I was more in control of my actions and managed to get him off of me. He had me flipped for a while so by the time he was getting to my lower region I managed to get him off guard." Fumbling with the button of his pants, he slowly undid them, sliding them down. "I know you, you need to make sure.... so you can see....but I'm telling you the truth...." he mumbled, face tinting lightly.

* * *

Suzaku released the breath he didn't realize he was holding in. Relief flooded through his frazzled nerves as Lelouch relayed the account in a little bit more detail. "Thank God." he sighed as he pinched the bridge of his nose with his right hand. Hearing the rustling of fabric, the detective glanced back up to see his roommate stand in nothing but his boxers. 

He kept his eyes focused on the younger man's face for a while before standing up to turn on the hall light for a better view. Trying to keep a professional demeanor, the twenty-six year old looked over to where he had seen the beginning of a bruise on his best friend's hip. It didn't appear as though there were any other cuts to be found, but the bite marks, although faint, were still visible. Feeling anger return into his mind, Suzaku placed his hand on the other man's hip while turning him around to see if there were more injuries on his back.

Feeling better at not finding anything to concerning, Suzaku noticed his hand was still holding onto the other's side. Lelouch's skin was surprisingly soft to the touch and he seemed toned, but on the thin side. Casting his green eyes away from the other's rear, he couldn't help but to bring Lelouch’s back against him as he crossed his arms around the other's shoulder. Nestling his head against Lelouch's neck, Suzaku released an exhausted sigh. "Thank God he didn't get far... "

* * *

Lelouch's eyes widened in surprise when he felt the others chest against his back. "Suzaku?" At the feeling of the others arms around his front, and his cheek against his neck. He felt himself slightly stiffen, he wasn't used to this, at least not from the other. His ear perked at what the other said, causing him to avert his gaze to the side. 'He'd hate me if he knew it was provoking...' Lifting his hand up, he slowly traced it over Suzaku's.

"Hey...I'm ok. I'm sorry for worrying you like this." He released a light sigh, leaning his head against the others. "I'm a big fighter, I have your training books for that. Basic maneuvers really do help out," he said, lightly chuckling. Though he knew this was no laughing matter to the other, it still seemed rather funny to him. Lifting the others hand, he placed light kisses across his palm. "You know, you’re probably the only one who would show compassion for me in this situation...no one ever did that for me before," he whispered.

Lifting his gaze from the ground to the others emerald gaze, he brought the others hand to his lips again. "Is it bad for me to crave a sense of belonging? To want to be cared about? Is it bad for me to desire to feel real?"

* * *

Tilting his head up at the feeling of a soft caress against his hand, Suzaku's eyes locked onto Lelouch's face. Trying to gauge what it was the younger man was feeling, he listened to everything the other said. "I'm surly not the only one to care about you." he wanted to say, but sensed his roommate was trying to get something off his chest. Deciding it was best to allow the college student to finish, the detective averted his sight back on the messy locks of black hair that was still a bit damp from being splashed outside.

The feel of soft butterfly kisses trailing along his open palm dragged the older adult's attention to what Lelouch was doing. He kept his gaze focused on those pink lips as the college student continued to chaste himself over worrying the other. Feeling a turn in his stomach, Suzaku lifted his head off the other's shoulders, but continued to keep eye contact with his friend. 

"You should never blame yourself for wanting to be loved. To be sought after." he reassured. They may have been separated for a number of their teen-aged years, so it was the elder's guess as to what could have occurred within that time span that could have caused his roommate to shut himself away from others. He had noticed it after the other had moved in. At first he attributed the solitary lifestyle to the accident involving the deaths of his parents, but after these past few years he noted that Lelouch never did shed any light on how it made him feel overall. Feeling as if this may have been the first time the younger man had been so honest with him sent a beat into his chest. 

Feeling himself leaning closer to the other, Suzaku felt a rush of blood to his head before he pulled away from the hug he had been giving to the other. Trying to play it off as if he needed to cough, the detective covered his mouth to prevent it from revealing the red sure to be spread across his cheeks. "Anyways... We are going to report this assault. That is a given, but that doesn't mean we can't enjoy a nice breakfast." walking around the bar to the entrance of the kitchen, Suzaku pulled open the cupboards to search for the coffee grinds and get a pot started. "What is it you desire? You deserve to be spoiled today..." Thinking about what he had been saying, Suzaku couldn't stop a grin from forming. "Heck, I'm taking the day off. This day is going to be all about you, Lelouch."

* * *

Lelouch released the others hand when he pulled away from him, a light smile forming on his lips. His reassurance was strangely comforting to him. Looking down at his tattered clothes, he nodded at the mention of filing a report. It was then at that moment he realized how hungry he was. Running from the river back to the apartment was almost 1.5 miles. He lifted his gaze back up to the others, before stretching his arms out. 

"Breakfast does sound good right now." It was as if everything was hitting at once, hunger, nausea, sleepiness and a desire to shower. Lelouch was brought back to the attention of Suzaku talking. "Can you afford to take the day off? Not having a hard time at the office? I've been trying to keep up to date with reports on that serial killer, nothing has been heard in a while maybe the spree is over." 

'Heh yeah right.' Zero snarked.

Leaning forward, he picked up his clothes before tossing them in a plastic bag. "I'm not sure how much we stacked up for breakfast food. I'll just take two eggs over medium with toast." Releasing a yawn, he stretched out his arms again before running his hands over his body. "God I feel so gross. I'm going to take a shower and hopefully wash away this icky feeling of saliva on my skin." Making his way into the bathroom, he lazily pushed the door closed with his foot, not bothering to make sure it clicked when it closed and shed the only piece of clothing he wore. Turning the water up to a heated warm, he stepped in and allowed himself to be enveloped in it. 

Lelouch made sure to thoroughly wash his body, though no amount of scrubbing would wash away the bite and hickey marks. 'Great, how am I going to cover these up when I have to go into work?' Releasing a sigh, he turned off the water and allowed the remnants to drip off his body. Reaching out, he felt around for his towel which made him realize he hadn't brought it in with him. 'Crap.' "Uh...Suzaku? Can you grab my towel for me please? I left it hanging on the back of my door," he called out, slapping his head in frustration at his incompetence.

* * *

Hearing the other's concern about him missing work, Suzaku returned with a reassuring smile. "I haven't taken a day off in two weeks. Gino has been covering for me in paperwork, but my boss would eventually demand I take time off when he does find out. This is just making work easier." he admitted. After setting the kettle on the burners to boil water for their coffee, the detective made his way over to where the icebox stood. 

Peaking inside, the older man pulled out several eggs from the fresh carton that was purchased last night along with the remaining bacon hidden on the door crevices. As Lelouch walked over to the shared bathroom, Suzaku set to work on heating up the pan, placing bread in the toaster and setting the bar counter with plates and mugs ready to be filled. After sizzling up the last few strips, Suzaku lifted his gaze towards the bathroom where he heard the voice of his roommate.

Turning off the stove, he left the remaining heat to finish the cooking while the twenty-six year old made his way over to the restroom door. "What was that? I couldn't hear you over the sound of th-" With the intention of knocking on the wood while he asked for the other to repeat, the door swung open at the force used. 

Lelouch stood near the entrance to the bathtub, water dripping quickly down his lean body. With the grim scrubbed off, the marks given to him during the assault shown clearly against the peach skin. The two stood absolutely still at the sudden reveal. Unable to prevent himself, green eyes followed the trail the hickies made down below the hip line and ending right on the limp appendage between the college student's thighs. 

Normally he would have apologized and turned around. Those marks had made Suzaku worry of wrongdoing, but his friend had reassured nothing had happened. With sudden determination, the older man strode into the bathroom and firmly had Lelouch sitting on the toilet seat cover. He didn't hear any protest due to going fully on instinct. Using his left hand to hold the younger man's wrists away from view and the other to help spread his thighs apart slightly, Suzaku examined the dark marks set upon the length of Lelouch's dick. Noting the indentures and purple bruising along the side and base, the detective felt anger course through his nerves as his shoulders tensed. 

Sharply turning his head up to see the red face of the other, green eyes locked onto amethyst. "Why didn't you tell me he molested you?"

* * *

Lelouch blinked, trying to come to terms with what was going on. Suzaku was staring at him, almost as if in shock for a few moments, eyes analyzing his body. "Suzaku what are you-" His sentence was cut off when the other grabbed him, forcing him to sit on the toilet seat. "What the hell?!" He let out a gasp when his arms were pushed up and his legs were spread. "Have you lost your mind?!” Lelouch felt his face turn bright red at the position he was forced into.

It took him a while to realize just exactly what he was looking at. 'Oh yeah...I forgot that horny bastard was trying to get me off...' He flinched at the angry accusation the other shot at him. Lowering his head, he turned away. "I just wanted to forget about it... the moment he started to do that to me is when I kicked him in the diaphragm and took off running...." tsking lightly, he tried to keep the angry tears from forming.

"All that really matters is that he didn't stick it inside me! As much as I hate the fact that he forced himself onto me, I am grateful that he didn't manage to go all the way!" Releasing a ragged sigh, he lifted his gaze slightly, the frustrated tears falling. "I wouldn't expect you to understand why I always seem to do reckless things, but that sense of desire and need to feel alive is so strong. It's an insatiable thirst that drives me to explore things far beyond the safety of norms. I know this time it went far out of my control and it has made me more aware of what is out there... but haven't you ever wanted something even though you know you shouldn't?"

* * *

Seeing the tears form before spilling over amethyst and trickling down rosy cheeks snapped Suzaku out of his sudden burst of frustration. Looking to his hand, still holding the college student's wrist together than down to his other arm where he held onto Lelouch's leg. Blinking a few times, the detective realized just how close he was to the other's member as well as making his friend very uncomfortable. 

He quickly let go than stood up to release a sigh. He did feel guilty about having lost his cool, but just couldn't seem to control himself this morning. "Look, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to force you into this, but... God damn those are teeth marks on your penis." he cursed before bringing his hand up to push back the bangs from his uncombed hair out of his face. 

Casting another look to the younger man's image, he felt worse for his over-reaction. Taking a step closer he gently placed his left hand under Lelouch's chin before carefully lifting his face so they could meet eye to eye. Frowning slightly at the fat tears slipping down, he used his other hand to wipe them away as softly as he could. Having heard everything he needed to hear, Suzaku shook his head slightly. "I don't approve of going at these things alone..."

He leaned closer to whisper in the other's ear. "...but I do know this feeling of holding back. Maybe it's time to admit the truth?" Placing his lips to peck lightly on Lelouch's earlobe as a sort of seal to a secret, the detective felt his heart pace before he leaned closer to seal a kiss on his dear friend's lips.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special Thanks to my best friend Ayame for helping me with this.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning, things tend to get a little more graphic as the chapters go on...

"Admit the truth?" Arching his eyebrow, he shivered at the feel of the older male's lips on his ear. Taking in a breath he was cut off to the feel of the others lips on his. This was the second time, within twenty-four hours that the other male had kissed him. But another thought that ran through his mind was how the other acted and responded after the first kiss. Granted he had punched him in the gut, but it had brought a few other things to light. 

Lifting his hand up, he placed it at the base of the others cranium, pulling him closer to deepen the kiss. After a while, he pulled away, a smile forming on his face. "It's a little early for jokes don't you think?" He leaned his head forward, resting it against the others. "Although I must admit, you are pretty good at kissing. Be a little more confident though, I could tell you were rather shaky." Lelouch then placed another kiss on the others lips before pulling back again.

"I can sense the uncertainty in you right now, and I am sure that it was some curiosity that peaked your interest about what it would be like...to be honest I was quite curious myself... but I don't want you to jump into something I am for sure you aren't ready for. I mean just a few nights ago you were defending yourself about the misunderstanding...so all evidence points to curiosity." Running his hand down the others neck, he smirked. "Maybe you'll get more sense of things when I'm not stark naked in front of you."

* * *

Feeling soft lips respond to the kiss caused a small noise to come from the detective’s throat. He could feel the smile spreading across his face as he caressed his friend's cheek softly. One hand managed to snake its way around the back of Lelouch's side, pulling the younger man closer. As they parted ways, Suzaku sensed a heat rise to his cheeks as he continued to stare into the other's eyes before traveling down to the soft, full lips beneath. 

Glancing back up at the mention of his performance had the other raise an eyebrow as the corner of his mouth twitched up to a smirk. He accepted the return kiss, leaning in more in hopes for more as his eyes continued to stay focused on everything that was Lelouch's face. The way he blushed slightly, the way he smiled and laughed to himself and the way his eyes would dart from himself to the emptiness around them. 

Allowing a small frown to grace his own features at his roommate's reasoning behind what had transpired, Suzaku could admit to himself that he felt a bit annoyed. There he was trying to come to terms with these weird emotions he's been feeling for the past two weeks, and here is Lelouch trying to shoot it all down in one blow. So much for coming to terms with oneself. 

Pulling back from his hold on the other, her rose fully at where he stood. "Suit yourself." he muttered before turning around and making his way to the bathroom door. As he was about to exit, he chanced a glance back for a few more prolonged seconds. "I'm a very patient man and can wait an eternity for you to make up your own mind about where we stand." Giving the other one last smile half-heartedly he made his way out and closed the door. Before heading back into the kitchen, Suzaku gave a final knock before informing the other that breakfast was beyond ready.

* * *

Lelouch watched as the exited the bathroom and closed the door behind him. He couldn't help but smile at the comment as well as that the other knocked at the door to tell him that breakfast had been ready. Shaking his head, he got up to brush his teeth, realizing that the other hadn't brought him the towel he asked for. 'Might as well go out there without one, he's already seen my dick under different circumstances.' Spitting out the excess past and beginning to rinse his mouth he could hear Zero’s bickering.

'You do know that if you two get involved we are either going to get caught or you are going to have to kill him.' Zero whispered in the back of his mind.

'Yeah I know what it means.'

'Then why are you thinking about it?'

'I can choose what I want to do. Don't forget that I am the original owner of this body.' At that, it got really quiet which was a surprise. Putting his toothbrush away, he opened the door and felt the cool air of the living room hit his naked skin. "It's a good thing I am resistant to cold, the outside was worse," he called out loud, making his way over to his room.

Upon entering his room, he retrieved a pair of boxers from his drawer and some clean jeans. He was also making a note of having to pick up some new clothes soon. At this rate of his clothes being burned, torn up and covered in blood, his wardrobe was slimming down. Once he got his pants on, he pulled the towel from its hanging place behind to the door to dry off his hair. Making his way back to the kitchen, he saw the back of the older male. He couldn't help a smirk to form on his lips. 'I wonder just how long his patience will last him.'

* * *

After leaving Lelouch in the bathroom, the detective made his way past the living room and to the kitchen. He took the spatula off the counter before pouring the eggs and bacon onto the two plates waiting on the bar. When he was finished with that the older man took hold of the coffee pot before pouring the liquid into the mugs next to the plates. After placing the kettle in its holder, Suzaku turned to the refrigerator to pull out a jug of milk as well as snatching a small, glass sugar bowl off the counter. 

Leaving the kitchen to sit on the other side of the bar top, he placed the milk and sugar in between the two plates before choosing his own place to sit. As the twenty-six year old was fixing his personal cup of coffee, he paused at the sound of his roommate leaving the bathroom. Turning green eyes to look upon the door of Lelouch's bedroom he couldn't help but laugh at the other's comment on the coldness of the room. "Then maybe you should have packed a towel." he muttered, not realizing that was what his friend had been insinuating. 

Satisfied by the amount of sugar he had pour into his cup, Suzaku took a long sip from the hot beverage. He winced at the burn his tongue suffered lightly before turning his gaze back onto the breakfast in front of him. Hearing the other make his way out of the bedroom as he picked up a strip of bacon off the plate, a question come to mind. "So what do you want to do today?"

* * *

Pulling up his plate, he bit into the piece of toast. Resting his elbow on the counter, he stared up at the ceiling, chewing thoughtfully. "I'm not too sure. I had planned to go to the lab, course that was before last night happened. Feels rather odd having a whole day free." Putting the toast back on his plate he made his way around the other to pour himself some coffee. "You put a lot of sugar in yours, how is it that you drink your coffee sweet but you like your alcohol bitter?" 

Placing two cubes of sugar in his coffee, he stirred it with the spoon, turning to face the other. "Then again, it seems to match your bitter sweet personality." He then placed the spoon in the sink and took a long sip from his cup. Releasing a content sigh, he rested his cup on the counter before staring over at the other. 

"You know, now it's got me thinking..." Lelouch slowly moved forward, snaking his hand around the others body to the counter behind him. "...I wonder if your cream is just as sweet," he purred. He then pulled a way, smirk on his face and a bacon strip he'd taken from the others plate and began to munch on it.  
* * *  
Feeling the choking sensation of coffee slipping down the wrong way, Suzaku sputtered as he placed his cup back on the counter and the other hand to cover his mouth. Green eyes shot to amethyst accusingly as the detective watched Lelouch's grin grow as he chewed on the stolen strip of meat. He could sense the redness in his cheeks begin to grow before turning away.

"I don't know what you mean." he lied before taking the rest of his plate and standing from his spot. Suzaku walked over to the living room before plotting himself down on the sofa. He reached over for the remote and clicked on the television before chancing a look at the younger man. "Whatever you want, is what I said. I'll wait if you want to go to the lab."

* * *

Lelouch couldn't help but chuckle as the other choked on the coffee. His smirk widened even further as the other turned away from him, huffing and puffing to the couch with his face bright red. "Oh I'm sure you do," he whispered, taking a drink from his cup. Placing it back down on the counter, he thought about it for a while before resting his elbow on the counter. "Why don't you come with me to my lab? I'm pretty sure you haven't seen what I do as a form of school and work, it would be fun." 

Finishing all the food on his plate with the exception of one strip of bacon, picking it up in his fingers. "Of course that's if you want to. I just have to make sure that the experiments I'm working on don't die on me. I didn't go yesterday so I should check on those specimens right now." Placing the plate in the sink, he made his way into the living room. "Think it over, I'll be getting ready," he whispered against his ear, placing the bacon strip on the others plate. He then winked at him before making his way back to his room.

* * *

The thought of getting to see his friend work was rather enticing at the moment. Suzaku still felt a bit flustered at the accusation, though, so he pretended to not hear while his eyes focused on the television screen ahead. There was nothing on but commercials about new movies and game systems appearing which made it seem even more boring. 

An eyebrow lifted questioningly as he noticed his roommate place the remaining strip of bacon on his own plate. Green followed as the other trailed off into his bedroom. Looking back down to the piece of meat on his plate, the detective thought over what had just transpired between them. Although it was easy enough to admit he felt some kind of attraction to the younger man, Suzaku wasn't certain about what could play out between them. Was he just being bi-curious or did things finally make sense?  
Hearing loud music play out from the box in the living room, emerald eye caught on to the latest commercial on a remake of an old video game. "That looks just like the one we used to play." he mummer to himself as familiar characters acted out. There might have been a time when the two younger versions of themselves crowded the counsel at his house or chased down the dirt paths in the park. That was long ago, however.

Thinking about it, a decision was made rather easily. Placing his dish on the coffee table, Suzaku lifted himself from the couch and made his way over to his bedroom where he quickly found a dress shirt to wear for the day. Sending a text to his partner about him taking the day off, the detective pocketed the phone before lifting his wallet and going over to where he knew Lelouch would be waiting for him. "Ready for a day out?"

* * *

Lelouch shifted through the different shirts he had in his closet. It was rather difficult to find something that would cover his neck from curious eyes of passing individuals. Releasing an annoyed sigh he decided on an Under Armor nylon black shirt. It had a collar that resembled a turtleneck but it didn't feel bulky and hot, it was rather thin and fit against his body but it was enough to keep him warm. He then pulled his fur lined jacket over his shoulder before looking himself over in the mirror. Normally he didn't really care what he put on, but this was a different case. He didn't want anyone asking questions if they happened to see those pestering marks. 

Pocketing his phone and iPod, he draped his workbag over his shoulders. Exiting out into the living room he noticed Suzaku was no longer sitting on the sofa. However the T.V was still on, so he decided to view what was on. There was nothing really interesting to him, however he did catch that they were going to do a briefing of the case that was stumping the police force. "Stay tuned for information on the serial killer known as the Black Knight tonight at 10." He couldn't help the smile coming to his lips, and the cynical laugh he could hear from inside his head. 'I'd like to see what they think they have on us.' Lifting the remote, Lelouch set the system to record that segment in case they weren't home to watch.

Not long after he turned off the T.V did Suzaku walk out of his room. Looking up at the question, he smiled before stretching his arms out. "Yup. I'm glad you decided to come with me to my work. It may be a little boring since you have a job that always keeps you on your feet but I think it's pretty interesting." He then got up and moved towards the door to put on his shoes. Opening up the door, he was greeted by a small gust of cool air. "Mmm feels nice out here," he sighed in contempt, loosening the grip his jacket had on him to let the cool air envelope him. 'This is a lot better than running around town drenched in water.'

* * *

Suzaku eyed what the other was wearing with a frown. Of course his friend wouldn't want onlooker to take note of the sudden bruising on the younger male. He made a reminder to himself that he would take Lelouch to the station some time later on that day. As much as the younger man would like to play it off as no big deal, Suzaku was not going to take no for an answer. The college student needed to make a proper statement about this if they were ever going to find the man who almost raped him.

As they walked out of the apartment building and into the fresh air of the new day, the detective noticed that there seemed to be less traffic this morning. Perhaps it was because of them taking a different path than normal, or people are just being more cautious? After the two buckled up, Suzaku pulled out of the parking garage and made a sharp turn towards the University. 

Nearing the old building, Lelouch guided the two towards where visitor parking was located. On the days that he had dropped off his roommate at school, Suzaku didn't have time to take a good look at the place. When he had gone to school, it was in a different state altogether and straight to the academy after two years of that. After parking and getting out of the impala, the dark haired man couldn't stop his eyes from taking in the sight of every building nearby. From what he knew, this place had stood for over fifty years and one could tell from the foliage and stains on the old bricks. 

"Have you ever explored it all?" he wondered out loud while following behind the younger man to where the chemistry building was located.

* * *

Lelouch fiddled with the strap that rested on his shoulders, pulling out his phone to check the time. It hopefully wouldn't take longer than half an hour to check up on his experiments and see if anyone had questions for him before they'd leave. He lifted his gaze up at the question the older male asked out loud. "Hmm, maybe a few times when I was taking my earlier courses. Now I'm mostly confined to the science building. If you want we can explore a bit after I check up on my stuff. It shouldn't take long." Pocketing his phone, they walked past a few more building before arriving at the science building. 

"It was a little chilly out there, if you want we can grab a latte at the cafe a few buildings down when we go exploring." Pushing the button for the elevator, he rubbed his hands together to regain some warmth. Once inside he pushed the button for the fourth floor. Once they reached the top, the doors opened and Lelouch stepped outside, following the long corridor before arriving at another door with a scan card system. Lifting the key he had attached to his bag, it took a few seconds before the door unlocked. 

"Well this is where I work. It's nothing too fancy really." Behind the door lay another long corridor that had doors on each side, all were labeled with names to signify the rooms for the individuals occupying them. "There are two break rooms, one in the front and one towards the end of the corridor, as well as two sets of bathrooms, however the one at the end of the hall has a shower set for those who work late nights and in case of any chemical spills." Sitting in the break room were two more males, talking amongst themselves before turning to look at the other two. "Hey Lelouch! Who's your friend?" 

"This is Suzaku Kururugi, he's also my roommate. Suzaku, this is Rivalz Cardemonde and Shōgo Asahina." 

The other young men waved over at them, grins on their faces. "Come, you can see my lab." Using the key, he opened up his room, allowing the door to slowly swing open. "You can put your stuff here on the couch, make yourself comfortable." Dumping his stuff on the table, he moved over the miniature incubator to check on the dishes.

* * *

When they reached the correct floor, Suzaku was a bit amused to see his friend having to use an ID card system. It seemed so out of place, considering his perspective on what college was like. More like a scene from a movie than anything. "Any cause for concern?" he joked as they walked down the hall. He made note of the directions the other was indicating before turning his gaze towards the open break room.

"Nice to meet you both. Anything I should know before we venture on? I trust Lelouch has been on his best behavior here." he teased as they greeted the two lab students lounging about. After they walked a bit further to his roommate's private lab, the detective couldn't stop the sense of giddiness building up in his chest. What kind of experiments has the other been up to? Images of a mad scientist version of his younger brother made Suzaku cover his mouth to stifle a laugh before it can begin.  
When the door closed behind them, green eyes took a huge look around as he noticed all the different shapes of glass and very light colors. Looking over to the couch Lelouch had mentioned, he sat briefly before looking up to see a couple of speakers set up on the corners of the walls around the room. He grinned at the thought before looking back over to the younger man. "Couldn't be separated from the music, could ya?" he chuckled before setting in his mind at the chance to explore the room further.

* * *

Adding a few drops of non-distilled liquid into the dish, he watched the bacteria inside immediately spread into the damp areas before the size slowly began to rise. 'That should be sustainable for a few more days,' he thought to himself, putting them back in the incubator. At the older male's comment he turned to look at him, casting a smile. "I am too attached to separate it from anything that I do," he replied, moving to put books back on the shelves. 

He could see the other looking about the room from the corner of his purple eyes, making him chuckle to himself. "In response to your previous question, we use ID cards because we had instances in the past were students liked to steal cadavers. It is rather disturbing to think about it but it has happened. So we use these systems for security, also those bodies are expensive." Putting the final book away, he turned to face the other.

"We each explore different areas of experiments, while in most cases they are similar they also vary greatly." He motioned over to the table that held all the test tubes. "Make sure you don't mess around with those while you are looking around. Some of those could seriously mess you up if come in to contact with skin." He then thought about it for a moment, a smirk coming to his face. 

"Although I believe I just finished making my very own trans-dermal aphrodisiac, it hasn't been tested so be careful," he chided with a wink.

* * *

Scrunching up his nose at the thought of corpses being stolen, Suzaku tried not to think about the purposes and intents of what those mentioned students had. Way too many images crossed his mind as he cursed his ability to come up with multiple conclusions using only a few clues or details. “Expensive? How much could a corpse cost, really? Then again it’s not like you can go to the store and pick one right off the shelves. Dead bodies on aisle five!” he joked before putting his hands behind his back and continuing his stroll around the lab in curiosity. There were many vials and bottles in different location with multiple items stored in each. A part of him kept imagining his young friend mixing tubes together with storm clouds brewing in the background like a modern day witch. 

Looking over to a beaker with clear liquid and something else inside, he peered closer all the while mostly listening to Lelouch’s explanations. In the beaker a few faint bubbles were gathered on the surface of the liquid with was seemed like a black ooze was very slowly shrinking in size. Coming to the conclusion that it must have been an acid of some kind, he was about to question what the other was dissolving until he paid closer attention to a certain word the college student had remarked.

Looking back over to his friend quickly, Suzaku felt the color rush to his face. “Trans… trans-a something aph-a what?!” Catching the wink the smaller man threw at him, the detective knew he hadn’t heard wrong. He wanted to chide the other about the words they say in public before remembering they were in Lelouch’s private lab. There wouldn’t be any school cameras on the inside would there. 

Feeling his composure return, Suzaku found himself moving over quickly to the dark haired man. Lifting a hand to hold onto Lelouch’s chin Suzaku brought their faces closer together before holding back a bit. He hovered over the other with his other arm wrapped around the slim waist of his friend. “Well then, does that mean you have to test it for your research or you would get in trouble for not completing the work?” he smirked before leaning closer. Before their lips could touch, Suzaku lifted his gaze back onto dark purple eyes. Letting go he straightened out while holding the gaze. “Just kidding. Can’t distract you from your job, now can I?” He released a small laugh before turning around to continue looking around the room. He knew that if his roommate wanted to tease him, than he would be able to hold up on his own.

* * *

"Those bodies could range from $100 to possible $500 depending on the specimen I suppose. It varies from age, gender and body stature." Giving a soft shrug at the mention of price ranging for the bodies, the science department was greatly funded. Lelouch couldn't help but chuckle at the flustered nature the older male was showing. There were times he made it too easy for him to tease him, sometimes it made him wonder just how much the older male let his guard down around him.

He then registered the other walking towards him, blinking in surprise when the other grabbed his chin, their lips close yet not touching. It then made him start thinking about the scenario this morning, him being pinned down by the other, legs spread which had kept him exposed. The way their lips had been locked together for a short amount of time. He would admit that it was different from what he was used to. There was a sense of compassion which wasn't something he normally felt when he was with others. But amidst that compassion there was also confusion which is what fueled the need to tease him.

His eyebrow arched at the question about testing out his formula. Once the other pulled away, Lelouch's eye twitched in irritation at the way the other laughed before continuing to look around his room. 'Guess I should have expected that of him.' Thinking about it for a few moments, he smirked to himself. Opening up his drawer, he pulled out a black diamond shaped bottle that had originally been used as perfume long ago but he kept it for storage of his newest creation. Popping open the top, he dipped his middle finger into the bottle, pulling it out to see his finger lightly coated in a sap type substance.

Closing it with his free hand, he slipped it into his pocket before walking up behind Suzaku. Using his clean hand, Lelouch locked his fingers under the others jaw, just above the males pulse points, tilting his head back so his neck was exposed. Using his body to brace the others in place, he traced his lips over the others ear. "Yes, you should be a good boy and not distract me from my work," he whispered, middle finger pressed against his left pulse point. "But that doesn't mean you can't experience the fun first~" Running the finger across his throat, feeling the Adam's apple before tracing it back up to the right pulse point. If that had been a blade instead of his finger, he'd have bleed to death. Nipping the older male's ear lightly, he then released him. 

"Let me know how it works for you. I didn't apply to much because I wasn't too sure how strong it was." Cleaning his hand on his lab coat, he moved over to the door. "I have to check on a few things with the cadavers, so if you need me don't hesitate to ask one of the others where it is," he called, smirking at him before walking off.

* * *

Admittedly, he should have expected his friend to not like the way the detective had teased him right back. There was no doubt there would be some sort of retaliation. Of course, Suzaku did tend to leave his guard down around the other and had only guessed that the type of tease that was to be expected was another verbal taunt. He had ignored the sound of a drawer opening in the background and chalked it up to the college student returning back to his work unscaved, so naturally, when Lelouch crept up behind him and managed to pull his head back, the words, “Oh Shit, I’m gonna die!” came to mind.

Feeling the soft breath of the other as words were being whispered into his ear sent a shiver down the older man’s spine. He would admit to never getting used to the chills his childhood friend seemed to be giving him lately. He swallowed the words forming in his mouth as Lelouch traced the line across his lower neck. If the amethyst eyed youth had been some sort of deranged killer there would be no doubt to the demise of one law enforcement officer. As the deed was done, he could feel his cheeks burn up at the sensation of teeth against his ear.

Being released from the sensual type of grasp, Suzaku quickly brought his left hand up to where the other had slashed. Green eyes blinked in surprise at the feel of some oily residue. Pulling back the hand, he stared hard at the amber colored stain on his skin. Hearing the door close behind him, the detective looked up to see Lelouch had left entirely. Glancing back at the substance still on his hand, Suzaku brought it up to his nose to take a whiff before pulling away quickly. The stuff had an unknown scent to it. Something he was sure he came across before, but just could not place a name or image on. All that he thought of was how it seemed to linger in his senses more than anything. Maybe bringing it close was not such a good idea. 

As he wiped the substance on his pants, Suzaku's mind brought up all sorts of questions. Did Lelouch really just make this stuff? Was it really untested? What kind of side effects would it bring? He paled at the thoughts swimming across his mind before hitting his forehead with the palm of his clean hand. "Yeah right, there is no way Lelouch would put anything dangerous on me." he chuckled as he calmed down. Being in a science room again, reminded him of their brief time together in high school. Those days seemed much simpler. With his head cleared, Suzaku walked over to the shelves to continue his mini tour. 

When getting closer to the burners on the table, he wouldn't help but to cover his nose as the smell of ashes. Feeling another chill in the room, the detective brought up his hand to rub the sides of his arms. Was it getting colder in here? Not liking the feel, the twenty-six year old stepped away from where the a/c vent was blowing. "How long does it take to check up on a corpse?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special Thanks to my best friend Ayame for helping me with this.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning, things tend to get a little more graphic as the chapters go on...

Lelouch stood in front of the dissection table; the recent body that was picked to study was laid out. In truth, he'd already gotten the explanation and material needed for the examinations, the reason he stayed behind was because it gave him a closer hand on experience when it comes to dealing with his 'problem'. Looking down at the exposed intestines, everything was greatly defined with all the fat tissue removed. He couldn't help but smile to himself, finding satisfaction in the look of death, even in a complete stranger.

'Is it really safe to leave the detective in your personal room? Won't he go snooping through your stuff?' He chuckled, shaking his head. "I made sure to burn every form of evidence that was left behind. Whatever is still left behind is probably goop by now." Pulling the sheet back over the body, he exited the room before making his way to the medical room they had. It was habit for him to disinfect his hands after being in there. Washing up his hands, he looked up at himself in the mirror. The shirt he was wearing hugged his neck, occasionally irritating the bite marks he had.

Pulling down the cloth, he gave them a once over before opening up the first aid kit stored there. Rubbing the ointment on his skin, he made an annoyed face at his reflection. Normally he didn't have a problem with marks on his skin, it actually served as arousal for him, but in this case that poor bastard was too persistent. Releasing a sigh, he pulled his collar back up to its original position before rinsing his hands again of the ointment. 'Guess I better go check on Suzaku.' Heading back towards his room, he stopped when he noticed that they'd just brewed a fresh pot of coffee. 'It is a little cold...' Filling two foam cups with coffee, he poured an exact amount of sugar he'd seen Suzaku use at home in his cup. Heading back to his office, he managed to open the door. "I'm back. Here I brought you some coffee."

* * *

During his time in the private lab room, Suzaku couldn't help but notice the sudden changes in the room temperature. At certain points it would get cold, but most of the time he would feel the sweat begin to travel down his collar from the sudden heat in the air. Pulling at his shirt top, the detective made quick work to undo the first few buttons. 

As he walked around he noticed the dock stereo which connected to the Bluetooth speakers around the room. Curious as to what was next on Lelouch's playlist he gazed down at the screen display while pushing the play button. Soft music began while he read the title.

"I'm a killer, cold and wrathful  
Silent sleeper, I've been inside your bedroom  
I've murdered half the town  
left you love notes on their headstones  
I'll fill the graveyards until I have you."

Lifting an eyebrow at the lyrics in slight interest, Suzaku strode to the closest stool before pulling it close to where a speaker was located to listen carefully. Feeling the heat suddenly come back, Suzaku released a long held in breath before completely unbuttoning the rest of his shirt and pulling it open. 

"I wake in terror, blackbirds screaming  
dark cathedrals spilling midnight on the altars  
I'm your servant, my immortal  
pale and perfect, such unholy heaving -  
the statues close their eyes, the room is changing  
break my skin and drain me."

He wasn't sure what it was about the song, but his heart felt heavy with each beat. It slowly quickened its pace with each tone and arch in the chorus being played out. Lifting his right hand, Suzaku rubbed at his forehead in concentration before reaching further up to comb back his hair out of his eyes. 

"You're a ghost love, nightgown flowing  
your body blue and walking along the continental shelf  
you are a dream among the sharks  
beautiful and terrifying, lit and restless  
we dance in dark suspension.  
And you bury me in the ocean floor beneath you  
where they'll never hear us scream..."

Hearing the door open behind him, the older man lifted his head out of his hand before turning around to face the other. Green eyes gazed at Lelouch in a half-lit stare before a small twitch on the side of his mouth caused a smirk to form. He stepped off the stole quickly before closing the short distance between the two. Ignoring the cups of coffee entirely, Suzaku pulled the younger man into a deep kiss, pulling away occasionally to press smaller kisses against the corners of Lelouch's lips, before deepening them again. 

"Oh, the horror of our love  
never so much blood pulled through my veins.  
Oh, the horror of our love... never so much blood..."

* * *

Lelouch stared in question when he noticed the other male had his shirt unbuttoned and spread open. "If you were hot you could have lowered the heater-" His mouth was then silenced when the other pulled him into a kiss. Surprise took him over, causing him to drop the cups of coffee. He was rather glad that none of the liquid had landed on him or Suzaku. However a puddled mess now littered the floor near the door. Finally coming out of his surprise, Lelouch lifted his hands to slightly push the other away. He was only able to keep Suzaku off of him for a few brief moments to get them out of the forming puddle before the other male latched his mouth on his once more.

Where was this coming from? It then hit him when he felt the bottle in his pocket. 'Oh yeah... I didn't think that would actually work...' The sound of a familiar song ending caught his ears before the beat of another song filled the room. It was a usual non verbal song that he enjoyed listening to because the beat was powerful on its own. Though he was shorter than the older male, he was still able to maneuver him to the sofa, and push him to fall on his back onto the cushion. Not giving the other male a chance to move, he straddled his lap, holding him by his wrists to keep him from struggling.

'How odd this is like a reverse of what happened this morning...' Catching his breath, Lelouch looked over the other. Suzaku was unbuttoned and flushed, seemed like the aphrodisiac was pretty potent especially for such a small amount. For some reason seeing him like that really stirred up the heat inside of Lelouch as well. Guess his own creation had gotten to him too. Licking his lips, he used his free hand to slide into the chocolate locks of the older male. "Guess it's safe to say it works," he whispered against the others ear before crashing their lips together in a heated kiss. Releasing his hold on the others wrists, the hand slowly traced down the others chest, slipping his tongue into the others mouth.

* * *

As Lelouch tired to maneuver the two out of the slippery puddle of coffee spreading around them, Suzaku made quick work of nipping along the younger man's jaw and neck. As they side stepped each other, Suzaku used his right hand to hold the other close while he slipped the other into the folds of Lelouch's jacket and began pulling the cloth down. 

By the time he was sure he had finished removing the other's jacket, Suzaku was about to set his sights on the shirt underneath until he felt himself being pushed back onto the couch. The brunette let out an astonished chuckle at what had transpired. Green eyes glanced up through his auburn bangs, which fell forward in the fall. "Don't blame me for what you did." he smirked as he tried pulling his arms loose from where the other held them. Eyeing his roommate up and down from where the other had chosen to sit, Suzaku couldn't help but to lick the bottom of his lip.

Breathing deeply, the detective turned his head to the side to pop the side of his neck and released the tension trapped there. At the feel of Lelouch's hand in his hair, Suzaku allowed a small growl to escape his lips. It was frustrating to feel like he was being denied for a bit, but was glad to feel the affection he had felt building up being returned through a series of more kissing. With his hand free, Suzaku's left hand grips onto the ember locks of the other while they kissed. Slipping one eye open to see Lelouch's held his closed at the moment, the detective smirked into the kiss while he dragged his free hand in caresses down the younger man's back until they reached the hem of his pants where they grabbed through the fabric and brought Lelouch's hips lower onto his own in a rough grind.

* * *

Lelouch hissed in pleasure at the friction he received upon the older male yanking his hips down to create contact. Opening his eyes, he met the others emerald gaze, smirk forming on his lips. "You must be sex deprived because you seem desperate to rip my clothes off," he commented, chuckle following. Tracing his hand up to meet where the others was contacted with his shirt. "Are you going to clean the marks that wretched fucker left on me? I wouldn't mind any from you." The words came out like a purr, pulling his hand up slowly lift his shirt. 

Licking his lips, Lelouch lowered his body against the others again, an audible grunt leaving him again. In the particular situation they were in, it would be rather problematic if someone decided to walk into his office space and see them tangled together. Although not before slipping on the coffee puddle that covered the door like a welcome mat. Another chuckle escaped him, while others would be worried about being seen, he thrived on that feeling, it was common especially for his nightly hunts. The low growl the older male released brought his attention back to the current situation.

The fact that the others shirt had already been opened made things much easier for him. Aside from that guy Suzaku had brought with him during his drunken stupor, his chest was practically a virgin when it came to marks. Leaning forward, he nipped and sucked at the flesh along the male’s chest. He was pretty well toned, which wasn't much of a surprise since he figured he had to be ready for anything in that particular field. Looking up, he grinned at the winced expression of every mark he was leaving. Closing the distance, Lelouch's lips played against the others. "How about another taste." Their lips molded together once again, dominance and the desire for more eminent.

* * *

The feeling of Lelouch pushing back against him was more than enticing. Suzaku couldn't get enough of the other man as he held tightly onto the younger man’s waist. Fingers slipped carelessly beneath the hem of the college student’s jeans and under the loose cloth of boxers as well. Deepening the kiss, his mind clouded over at the sense of feelings coming in. Lelouch’s skin was very soft it was amazing he never noticed it during the times they were casually around each other. 

Hearing the comment about the previous intruder in their lives, the detective released another growl with more emphasis on the anger he felt at the reminder. “That bastard will never touch you like this again.” He gritted as he pulled away from the kiss. Staring hard into Lelouch’s amethyst eyes he could see the amusement bluntly shown. 

He was about to chided his roommate on the tact one was supposed to take with those kind of situations but placed the thought out of his head immediately as the younger man lowered his head to the exposed chest he had forgotten about. Unsure what the other was planning he felt a rush of air against heated skin sending a chill down his spine before the feel of Lelouch’s mouth against him. Green eyes never left off the expressions Lelouch made as he left small marks along his chest. With each nip, Suzaku squeezed the skin under his left hand and brought the two hips closer to a grind. 

He eagerly accepted the kisses being offered while combing his free hand along the side of Lelouch’s arm. Nothing went unnoticed between them as he felt a rush going downward. The feel of something hard pressing against him, reminded Suzaku of Lelouch’s need as well beneath them. Pulling back from the kiss slightly he held the other closer to him in a tight hug. Thinking long about where things seemed to be going he released a sigh. “Are you sure you want to do this… on such a dingy couch… with me?” he whispered in the other’s ear.

* * *

The desire to let the laugh he was holding inside was almost too great to withhold at the mention of the male not coming anywhere near him again. 'You might find out all too soon on that,' he thought to himself, tracing his fingers over the scowl on the others face. The angry possessiveness in the others eyes seemed to increase the blood flow throughout his body. It was something he hadn't felt before, he liked the idea of being desired by the older male. For once he would allow himself to indulge in his sexual desires.

Lelouch blinked when the other shifted and pulled him into a hug. He was rather confused at the question, he pulled away and stared at him for a moment. "I will have you know that this couch is relatively new, I picked it out not even 8 months ago," he chided, allowing a childish smile to form on his lips. It wasn't until he took a moment to fully analyze the situation that his brain started to wonder. "Although I am surprised you are asking me this question when you have me shirtless and with my pants practically off..."

Glancing at his lab coat on the floor, he caught a glimpse of the bottle peeking its way out. "That makes sense...I think the question is more for you than me. If your doing this due to effects of the drug then it's a good thing we stopped here huh," he replied, lifting himself off the other to stand up. Lelouch then began to fix his pants before moving towards the small area he kept cleaning supplies. "You may want to fix yourself up, I'm going to clean up the coffee spilled at the door before it spreads anymore." Pulling out wipes, he did his best to ignore the maniacal laughter echoing in his head. 'Don't say I didn't tell you it was a bad idea.'

* * *

Repressing a groan at the other’s last tease, half-lidded green eyes followed the other man as Lelouch made his way over towards the coffee still on the floor. He knew it was his idea to slow down, but the tightening in his pants was the ever-present reminder that disappointment was to be expected. The heat in the room did seem to cool down a bit without the college student being on top of him.

Trying to stand up for a bit was a bad idea as he felt his erection pressing against the zipper of his pant. Growling a bit at the discomfort, Suzaku sat back down on the couch and focused on trying to will away the hard-on. After what felt like a lifetime, his eyes trailed over to where Lelouch was still crouched down. Enjoying the nice view, Suzaku couldn’t help the thoughts that flowed through. “Well the room is private…” he concluded before reaching into his pants. 

Repressing a hiss at the feel of sensitive skin, Suzaku closed his eyes slightly as he reimagined how things could have turned out if he hadn’t made them stop. The thought of Lelouch turning around to see his performance had crossed his mind once, but was easily dismissed. “It’s not like he wasn’t going to see it anyway…”

* * *

The consistent smell of coffee was beginning to irritate him. Normally Lelouch didn't have a problem with it but the slippery liquid and lingering smell mixed with the lemony citrus of the wipes were starting to get to him. Releasing a sigh, he allowed his arm a moment to rest. Then a sound caught his ear, it was faint and stifled but it was there. It was coming from behind him, and he could only assume what course of actions the other was taking after their encounter. 

It reminded him of the pain he felt between his legs as well, though he was rather used to repressing sexual frustration. Lelouch's mind was growing fuzzy, closing his eyes as the sounds were echoing around him. Opening his eyes again, a sadistic smile formed on his face. 'Oh my, I'm let out to play next to one of the detectives assigned to my case... how lovely.' Making a movement to stand, Zero felt his legs restricted. 'Damn this boy....' 

Finally managing to get himself to stand, Zero gave a silent look around. There was nothing of use in the room; then again it would be harder to dispose of this one's body if it was in a public area of the campus. Cursing silently, he then felt something in his pocket. Fiddling with it, he realized it was Lelouch's phone. 'Hmmm....how about we embarrass you a little...' Pulling out the phone, the younger male snapped pictures of the detective pleasuring himself on the couch.

A sudden knock at the door brought Lelouch back as the nerves in his body tensed for a moment. When the older male turned around to see the younger male with his phone out, he simply played it off with a smirk. "Just couldn't wait could you," he spoke lowly. 

"Hey Lelouch are you in there? I need your help with something," called a female voice from the opposite side of the door. "Yeah, I'm here. Give me a sec, some tubes broke and I just finished cleaning." Slipping his phone in his pocket he leaned down to pick up his shirt and lab coat. Once he was done dressing he cast a final look at the other man. "Carry on," he called with a tease before walking out the door.

* * *

With eyes firmly closed to keep the images of the younger man raggedly squirming beneath him, the detective's hand moved in a firm grip. What had been reached through the cloth was now too awake to be contained under the fabric of denim. His breathing hitched a bit as he quickened the pace. Hearing a click in the distance, the twenty something year old chanced opening one eye to gaze over in the other's direction.

It was there by the door that he saw Lelouch with a hand holding onto his phone with an leering grin plastered over his face. Feeling his cheeks flush for a moment, the rational part of his mind concluded that if Suzaku truly didn't want to be caught, he wouldn't have chanced the other man turning around in the first place. With a resolute mind, the roommate returned the smirk in smug satisfaction. "Like what you see?" he countered as he resumed in his lewd actions. Biting the corner of his lip as his palm gave another firm squeeze, green eyes locked onto purple. 

Hearing the knock on the door had the detective quickly standing to get out of view. He tried to side-step his way along the couch but cursed at his luck of hitting his shin against the nearest table instead. "Damn it!" he cursed while keeping his back to the door. While he heard the voices talk in the background, the older man tried not to make a sound as he adjusted the jean he was wearing to try to force the hard member back in to a point where it was less likely to stand out.

* * *

Lelouch did his best not to let out a snicker when he heard the others sound of pain upon hitting himself on something. 'Now what's the fun of doing something like that without the thrill of being caught,' he thought to himself. Shutting the door behind him, he looked down at the familiar blonde female. "What was it you needed, Milly?" She looked up at him, light smile on her face. He could see the faint tint on her cheeks, the affections seemed to become more apparent recently after the older male had pointed it out at the farmer's market.

"I'm having some problems with the chemical mixing for a project, can I trouble you to help me out?" The pleading look in her eyes reflected the anticipation of his response. His thoughts traveled back to the male who was in his room, hiding the indiscretion he was performing. Lelouch wanted nothing more than to return to the room so he may continue watching. But he also remembered the uncertainty the other displayed when they were intimate. The tightness in his pants was a reminder that he would have to blow off steam since the other wasn't interested in going all the way. 

His attention returned back to the smaller female. "Sure, I'll help you." She cheered with excitement before taking his arm to lead him back to her office room. The tight hold he felt on his arm caused him to feel awkward. Normally he didn't have a problem with females getting rather close to him, but this one in particular was someone he met at school and any involvement could mean slip ups due to her rather dependent nature. 'Or it could be the perfect cover....' Lelouch's eyes hooded lightly at the thought, releasing a sigh as he tugged along by the overly happy girl. 'I wonder if things will end well...' he thought to himself as his mind wandered back to the older male hiding away in his room.

* * *

Hearing the sound of the door closing behind him, Suzaku turned his gaze to look back at where the other was. Ignoring the tightness in his pants, he made his way around the couch and peaked through the small window of the door. Seeing the girl from the other night with her arm wrapped around his best friend's shoulder had the detective grit his teeth in annoyance.  
"So... he does like her?" he questioned before looking back to the spot the two had been minutes prior. There wasn't a possibility to deny the attraction the two shared, so there wasn't a real reason to feel jealous. Either way he couldn't stop the stress building up at the sight of the little blonde around Lelouch. 

Allowing the better of him to get clouded, Suzaku exited the room as quietly as he could before following behind the younger adults. Peering from around the corner he wasn't sure if the two could see him. He may not been able to hear what they were talking about but it all bothered him even more. 

* * *

Lelouch was only partially paying attention to anything the girl was saying. Milly was an energetic chatterbox, words going miles per minute. How she was managing to squeeze in so many stories of different things through the walk to her room was beyond him. "So I made some stuffed zucchini and had plenty left over. Would you like to try some later?" Blinking at the question he was asked, he directed his attention back to her. 

"If I have time. Right now let's focus on getting those experiments done," he replied with a smile. The faint tint on her face only seemed to fuel the smile on his.

'This girls affections are so obviously painful....' They entered her room, leaving the door slightly open. 

"Alright so what was it you needed help with?" Lelouch watched the smaller female busy around to get her notes and the materials needed for the chemical mix. 

"The elements in these two chemicals are consistent to each other yet when I try to mix them together to form a compound, they seem to either separate completely or one ends up dissolving through the other." Picking up the two viles, he examined them before placing drops of each in the petri dish.

"These two particular elements do show that consistency, however you need to take into consideration that they are one of the elements with higher atoms. The reason the chemical compound isn't sticking is because there has to be a total of eight atoms per compound, with these you go over, and the excess atoms deteriorate the structure."

Milly nodded her head, taking down notes as the male gave her his reaction to her dilemma. "But if my project requires both of these high atom chemicals, is there a way to have them combined without the backfire?" Thinking about it for a moment, Lelouch's attention was brought a noise he heard at the door of the room. Glancing over, he allowed a smirk to lightly form on his face at the sight of someone familiar. Turning back to his colleague, he placed the viles back in place. 

"Yes there is. In order for two chemicals to coincide smoothly, you'd have to add a lower based chemical which can subtract the excess atoms, once that is done and the lower chemical is no longer needed they can form a nice compound." Milly smiled, placing her notes down. 

"You are really great at this you know." She began to laugh, however Lelouch paid no attention, merely laughing along side her as his eyes traveled back to the door, smirk in place. 

* * *

"He smirked!" ran through Suzaku's mind as he looked away with his back pressed against the wall. He had no doubt that he had been caught snooping around. Scratching his head in annoyance, the detective released a long sigh before closing his eyes and pinching the bridge of his nose in concentration. "The little prick is never going to let me live this down." he muttered before trying to regain his bearings. Thinking long and hard about why it was he chose to follow the two resulted in a smack against his forehead. 

Peeking through the window one last time, green eyes caught on to the sight of the blond giggling about something or another while his roommate fiddled with the vials on the desk. Glancing away the older man made his way back to where he knew Lelouch's private lab was located. Once he got to the familiar door, his reached out to open it with his left hand only to find the knob would not budge. Recognizing the digital key right by the wall, Suzaku cursed himself for not remembering this part of the room earlier.  
Looking down the hallway on either side, the brunette weighed his options. He didn't want to stand around like some kind of idiot. Lelouch would only have even more of a riot with that. Walking north to where he had first seen the break room, the detective decided it was best to wait there. "Lelouch will find me either way. Might as well replace that coffee wasted on the floor." 

Once in the room, he made his way over to the machines in the back. Unlike earlier, there had been no one there to interact with. After a steaming cup was dispensed, the twenty-six year old made his way down to the nearest table and pulled back a chair. After several minutes of waiting, the older man pulled out his phone and began to look up things on the internet. "Spending data because the school won't let me connect; how uncool." he chuckled before coming across the number he was looking for. After a long call the young man flipped closed his phone with a grin before putting it back into his shirt pocket.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special Thanks to my best friend Ayame for helping me with this.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning, things tend to get a little more graphic as the chapters go on...

Once Lelouch was done showing Milly the chemicals to use, he moved towards the door. "Well since that's everything, I'll be heading back now." Milly looked up and rushed to grip his arm. "W-wait...uh...do you have to go back right now?" He slowly turned to look down at her, her face was flushed and her eyes were staring up, glinting with hope. 'As much fun as it would be to mess with her, I'm not in the mood...' Lelouch offered a smile once more before clasping her wrist. "I still have my work to catch up on. What type of person would I be if I helped others but didn't complete my work?"

She looked down, slightly nodding. She then released his arm and took a step back. "Thank you for helping me Lelouch." "No problem; let me know if you have any more problems alright." He then exited her room, heading down the hall. 'There is no way he could have gotten back into the room, guess I should check the break areas.' Lelouch slowly made his way down the hallway, trying his best to rid the cheeky grin he knew was prominent on his face. 'Best not to irk him more than he already is, but then again... that would be completely out of character.'

Finding the older male sitting at the empty table, he slowly walked up behind him. "Enjoying your coffee, since you had me spill the previous cup all over my office floor," he commented, pouring his own cup. Mixing in the cream and sugar, he turned to face him. "I'm almost done with work, I just need to file away the papers and we can leave. Did you want to go back to the room or are you ok staying here," he asked, passing him to walk down the hall to his office.

Hearing the question from behind him, Suzaku turned to notice his young roommate had made his own way into the room without being noticed. Raising an eyebrow at the other's expression, the detective tried to play it off as him not caring. "Whatever you choose to do. Go ahead and finish your work, I'll just explore around the campus for a bit. When you are done, go ahead and text me and I will meet you in the car." he decided. After a few more minutes of small talk, the two parted ways.

After being left alone, the older man took the last few sips of his coffee before throwing away the empty cup. Taking a glance around the room to make sure he hadn't left anything behind on the table, the detective made his way out and down the hall to the exit. After leaving the private sector of the building, the brunette took in careful strides around the building in mild curiosity. A part of him appreciated the construction of the old architecture. In the past he had played around with the thought of going to school and becoming a contractor or designer of some type, but with no real skill, the young man had given up and chosen his other main interest to study up on.

After forty-five minutes of walking around the campus, Suzaku had grown weary of his tour and began to trek back to where the parking lot was located. Making his way to the impala, green eyes took another glance back to where he knew his friend had been studying. "Wonder how the kid's project is going?" he questioned before getting inside the car and turning on the radio.

After having finished up his project, Lelouch took down the recordings and stored them away to be turned in during the next conference. That was still a couple of days away but he was rather used to finishing way before the deadline. It would give him time to work on...other projects. Glancing at the beaker filled with acid, it had pretty much finished dissolving the latest evidence for the crimes committed. However, with his roommate on break there was no way to sneak away for the time being. 'Well I guess that's it for that.'

Leaving his office, Lelouch made sure the lock clicked behind him before continuing down the hallway. Making his way out of the science building was relatively easy, he knew which routes to take and how quiet to be when he didn't want others to know he was leaving, and in this instance so a familiar blonde wouldn't chase him down. Once he was a good distance from the building, he slowed his walking pace, not particularly in a hurry to go anywhere. The older male hadn't called him so he assumed Suzaku was doing fine on his own.

Pulling out his phone, he shot a quick text message to the older male asking where he was. Lelouch continued down his leisure path before ending up at the union where they had selections of foods, drinks and games to play. Purchasing a tea, he was about to make his way out when a burgundy glint caught his eye. A young girl had dropped her things and was scrambling to pick them up while the crowd moved around her. Lelouch's purple eyes were glued to the hair color, it reminded him of his sisters hair after it had been dyed in her own blood, and the way it would hang over his face at night when she would sneak into his room.

Clenching his fists, he moved up behind the girl and picked up a stack of folders. "Here." The younger student looked up at him in appreciation, taking her items as she stood.

"Thank you for your help, uh...?"

"Lelouch… No problem, try to be careful next time." Glancing down at the papers, he noticed the familiar biology papers. It didn't take long for a conversation to start after the brief introductions were made. Kallen Stadtfeld followed alongside Lelouch out of the union doors. They were both standing not too far from the visitors parking when they decided to part ways. "I hope to see you around again," called Kallen before turning and heading off in the direction of the science building. Zero simply waved, allowing a familiar smile to form on his lips.

With the radio turned up to a station that wasn't as repetitive in the latest music, Suzaku reclined his chair to get more comfortable in the wait. He was used to being alone and didn't mind the songs playing as the detective allowed his mind to drift. He thought about the case. Each victim was not random, that he could be sure of. There was something connecting them all. They all met a certain criteria for this serial killer. The question was, what?

Hearing a familiar beat to the next playing song. Listening to the words allowed his mind to drift onto more current issues. How was this relationship with Lelouch going to work? Was there even a relationship going on between them or is this all just curiosity. A part of Suzaku didn't want to admit he felt uncertain at some point, but remembering those moments they shared. "His lips just feel... so right." he muttered while tapping his fingers

Hey

What do you want me to say?

Tell me

I already gave you everything you want

Now give me everything I need

I've got a soul for sale

A soul for sale

Oh

What do you want me to be?

Show me

Cause I wanna give you everything you want

Just give me everything I need

I've got a soul for sale

A soul for sale

Not noticing the knock on the glass at first, the detective turned down the music when he saw a flash of ember. Looking up he noticed his roommate impatiently waiting with a certain smug grin. Throwing the other his own toothy smile, he reached over to pull up the lock on the passenger door. "What kept ya?" he questioned as Lelouch made his way into the car.

The two made some idle chat before the older man shifted his car into reverse and began to make his way out of the school parking lot. With his destination in mind, he wondered how long it would take for his friend to realize this was not the street that would lead them anywhere near home.

Lelouch gazed out of the window as the car exited into the street. "I ran into some freshman on my way out and naturally being the good person I am, I lent her a hand and directed her to the area she needed to go," he commented, a hint of tease mixed with sarcasm in his voice. Finishing his drink, he crushed it and tossed the plastic into the bag that hung in the car. Glancing back out the window, his thoughts traveled back to the freshman he'd met.

The girl was rather skinny for a person around her age, probably barely hitting her 20's. What had really caught Lelouch's attention was that goddamn hair color. Rustic brown, the color of mud mixed with drainage water and blood. His sister's hair had smelled of iron because she would drink heavily on occasion neglecting personal hygiene on such days, probably from the damage she would do to her hair after dyeing it and the sweat that would linger. Just thinking of it made his stomach turn and his anger start to rise.

Releasing a sigh, Lelouch eased out the tension building in his shoulders. "So where are we going since we obviously aren't going home," he asked aloud, trying to distract himself from the thoughts boiling in his mind. He had to exact some sort of restraint; Lelouch knew he was already in the yellow zone when it came to the police. The past few events had barely gotten by unnoticed, and his blood thirst was only growing stronger.

Shifting his gaze over to the older male, thoughts still racing through his brain. Just how much did the police already know from all the details he'd fail to cover up? How much information did Suzaku know and how long before Lelouch would have to decide if he was going to be on the run from his friend or if he will have to dispose of him? Blinking at the thought, Lelouch's eyes narrowed before shifting back to the passing road, licking his lips in euphoria.

Suzaku gave a curious glance towards his young roommate. "Making new friends already? Just how many people do you know at that campus?" he joked before concentrating back on the road. It wasn't often that the cop got to hear about his friend's college life. Was he as popular as it seemed back in the lab, or were those just people he knew in that one building. Was the job tough? Were the teachers fair? Questions like this kept rising in the brunette's head almost causing him to miss the ramp to the freeway.

Giving a harsh turn, Suzaku quickly glanced behind him to see how close they were to grinding against the guardrail. He chuckled lightly at their luck before catching the furious look in his friend's eye. Taking a nervous gulp, green eyes trailed back to the road. After a few minutes, the silence was getting to him.

"Ok, ok... I know you might want to kill me right now, but keep in mind I'm still driving." he joked while giving the other a small grin. "Besides, if I wasn't around, than who would be paying for this?" he asked as the pulled off the expressway and into the parking lot to a restaurant on the frontage. The place might have been pricey, yet right now it didn't matter to the detective. This day was supposed to be for his "little brother", so who cared how much Vietnamese food cost.

Lelouch was about to open his mouth to respond to his friend's question when he felt himself being swung to side of the car when it made a harsh turn to a nearly missed ramp. Peeling himself off of the side window, he turned his glare onto the driver. He silently cursed Suzaku's driving skills, and felt ever urge to strangle the older man. However, he decided against it, knowing it would do more harm for the situation than good.

He slowly turned away when the other made a comment, offering him a small child-like smile. Lelouch's eyes scanned the familiar restaurant before turning to look back at the older male. "How kind of you to take me to my favorite restaurant after I've made such a close encounter to death, and the food will be even more enjoyable now that I know you are paying." Once the car was parked, he slid out of the car, planting his feet firmly on the ground.

"Oh sweet land, I will not take you for granted. Such a close encounter made me appreciate the fact that I walk to school almost every day." His voice was laced with teasing sarcasm before turning to face the other male. "You must be trying to start a new trend with your driving skills, especially for being such a skilled cop. You must be playing a lot of Grand Theft Auto like all of those fresh kids out there." He allowed a smirk to play on his face before walking into the restaurant.

Giving a nervous chuckle at the cynicism in Lelouch's remark, the detective choose to ignore it and admit the fact to himself that he might have deserved that. As the two entered the restaurant, the detective made his way over to the host counter. He gave the man in the formal suit and nametag reading Kosetsu Urabe his information to confirm the reservation he had placed almost a few hours ago.

After a few minutes of chatting with Kosetsu, another waitress with a nametag reading Nagisa Chiba came by to show the two roommates to the area marked for them. The building itself was very well lit with crystal chandlers everywhere. The oriental decorative suited the restaurant but was in no way too cheap or in any way giving off a general Chinese food vibe. There was a reason this place cost a pretty penny. As they reached their table, Nagisa and another food runner pulled the divider aside to let the two sit. "You know it cost extra to get us a table with some privacy." he jibed at the price. Knowing the other wouldn't get too finicky about his money, Suzaku encouraged the other to order as much as he wanted.

"I'm getting paid in a few days, so there's nothing to worry about." he thought, while enjoying the look of his younger friend reading full-heatedly at the menu before them. "Still picky and indecisive as ever." he smiled at the memories of the younger two buying ice cream and Lelouch always stealing his in the end.

Lelouch allowed his eyes to roam around the interior design. They had done some remodeling over the past few months that they hadn't been there. It gave a nice touch to it. His eyes met with one of the hostesses, which caused him to offer one of his smiles out of habit. A light blush washed over Kosetsu's cheeks as she quickly averted her eyes down. Lelouch took the moment to refocus his attention in front of him; didn't want to cause commotions or risk bringing up his blood thirst on the off chance she would be a trigger.

He followed Suzaku into the closed off area, taking note of the dividers that could separate them from prying eyes. Once they had been seated, the waitress excused herself to give them a few moments to decide. "Hmm, I don't remember this being an option when we used to come here some time back. For all I know, you are trying to get me alone, I should keep my guard up," he commented with a tease before lowering his gaze to the menu. It really had been a while, and with each passing entree description he began to anticipate the need for food more and more.

He only lifted his gaze back up at the comment about his pickiness, arching his eyebrow at the smile on the others face. "I'm sorry. It is rather difficult for me to pick something to eat right off the spot when it has been a rather long time since I've been here. Unlike you I'm sure. If I recall correctly, you always seem to go out after work with your partner. I wish I had that luxury, but alas my studies and job don't allow me to do that often," he responded with slight spite in his words at being ignored by his friend. Placing the menu down in front of him, Lelouch leaned forward, evil smirk on his face. "But I'm sure if I regret what I ordered, I could just eat from your plate. You wouldn't mind would you? After all we have shared saliva quite often these past few hours~"

Suzaku returned the challenge with a sideways glance, "Nothing fancy ever happened. Most of it was fast food or even donuts and coffee if we were lucky enough to get to the shop in time before beginning a stake out." he explained, slightly in the defense. "Unlike a person in school, I usually have zero free time between casework. Do you have any idea how much paperwork goes into the things we do down at the station?" Turning back to the menu he raised an eyebrow at the listing.

"So much spice in these things, don't you think?" the detective puzzled over what it was he really wanted. Green eyes looked back up at Lelouch's remark about swiping his chosen meal. Normally the older man would disapproved with sharing his food, but he did promise earlier today that this time was going to be dedicated for his childhood friend.

"Whatever you want, Lelouch, everything that is mine belongs to you as well, my Cottontail." he smiled with a twink in his eye while reaching for the closest hand that Lelouch was using to browse through the menu before them and laying a sweet kiss upon the others knuckles. Grinning at the look the other was throwing his way, Suzaku settled his gaze on the returning waitress.

"Yes I will go ahead and order two Gekkeikan sake's for me and my young prodigy, please?" he ordered before also ordering Charbroiled Beef with Vermicelli. After he was done, the green-eyed man gave a wink to Nagisa taking their order.

Lelouch's eyes scanned the menu at a lazy rhythm, listening to the remarks of his partner. "Oh I could only imagine the large amounts of paperwork. Heaven knows it must be a lot, nothing compared to the daily reports a 'certain college student' is required to write on the daily regarding changes in experiments, as well as keeping tally of equipment and making sure that everyone else is doing their appropriate tasks because that 'certain college student' was elected head of the biology department," he responded in a low and sarcastic manner.

Taking a few moments to completely look over the menu, he gave a soft shrug at the comment regarding spice. "I honestly don't mind the spice, what kind of person prefers a plain palette in their..." his comment slowly died down when the other made an all too familiar comment he had hoped had died when they were children. His gaze lifted from the menu when his hand was taken and softly kissed. Amethyst eyes hardened on the brunette male, slightly narrowing as his mouth opened to say something when Nagisa Chiba returned.

Pulling his hand back, he shifted himself slightly, watching the others teasing gestures as well as the wink towards the female; he released a soft sigh. Once his partner had finished ordering, he turned to Nagisa with a smile. "I'll go ahead and have the Wonton Soup with Eggnoodles and a side order of tofu spring rolls please." Proceeding to hand her the menu, his finger brushed against her small hand causing the waitress to blush. Lelouch played it off as not noticing and watched as Nagisa left their area, closing the dividers behind her.

Waiting a few moments, he then turned his attention back to Suzaku. "Last I checked, I asked you never to make remarks about that memory," he said in a low voice. There were only a few things in his life that bothered him, and this happened to be one of them. One Halloween when he was about nine, his mother insisted on dressing him as a white rabbit for some ridiculous event. He was against it but Marianne always had her way. To make matters worse, she'd sent him out like that to do trick or treating, and since he was rather feminine in his features prior to adolescence, Lelouch was constantly mistaken for a girl. He had gone to look for Suzaku, who was out with his older friends, and when he'd found them, the others had preceded to make fun of him for his costume. Lelouch had never felt so humiliated, having to deal with comments for a good while of his elementary to middle school years.

Suzaku held back the laughter trying to bubble out of him at Lelouch's request. "So sorry, but little bunnies are just too cute to ignore. Especially purple-eyed ones." he smirked before leaning closer. Having just reached his teenage years, Suzaku was always the type to rebel against whatever his parents wanted. When they were young, the thirteen year old had snuck out of his parents' party to meet up with other teens one Halloween night. That night was the first time he tried a cigarette, and if things had gone differently in his choices, he may have never continued them. It came as no surprise when his younger friend had joined. Suzaku remembered the more crude boys had teased Lelouch about his costume, but when the teenager had laid eyes on the slim bunny suit that fit one size too small on the other, he couldn't say anything. Being young, Suzaku had saw no real harm in a few choice words, but would never let any of the others lay a hand on his close friend.

"Remember when that dumbass punk, Something Tamaki, tried to mess with your ears? You kept pouting and telling him to 'Fuck off'." he laughed more to himself as his green eyes cast downwards in the memory. "I think that was the first time I heard you curse... didn't bother much about it until the guy kept tugging you back to him by grabbing that puff of fur on your shorts." he frowned at that thought before a spark came behind his eyes and he glanced back up to the annoyed college student in front of him. "What was it that he did that made you break his nose?"

Resting his chin upon his hand, Lelouch listened to the other reminisce of the memory. Of course to the other it was more of a pleasant memory than it was for himself. The dividers opened once again as the waitress placed the sake bottles with two cups on their table, as well as two glasses of water on their side. Once Nagisa had departed again, Lelouch returned his attention back to the other.

"His name was Shinichiro Tamaki, and cursing was something I heard quite often in my house so it was only natural for me to pick it up. However I chose to use it whenever I saw necessary, which in many cases was to deal with annoying individuals who felt the need to pick on me." Reaching out, he poured his first serving into the cup. He swirled the liquid around thinking back to that night. It had a lot more impact on how he turned out now.

He should have known better to stick around since Suzaku had been hanging around the older kids. Lelouch was still in elementary school and his feminine appearance only added to the teasing. Of course, the older kids were very hands on as well. Poking at him and grabbing the garments of his outfit causing him to slightly wince in pain as the material as well as their fingers would jab at hidden bruises below his clothes.

The final straw was when one of the kids pulled at him and held him in place by his shorts. "Aww, what's the matter? Are you gonna cry little baby bunny? Come on now, cry." Lelouch had been shaking; all he heard was his parents' voices in his head through the teases. 'Are you going to cry? I'll give you something to cry about!' In that moment, his vision had gone blank but his managed to turn himself out of the others grip and shoved his hand out, palm up, into Tamaki's nose. He felt the fragile bone break and blood gushing onto his hand.

Lelouch blinked rapidly, lifting his head to look over at the older male. He hadn't realized that he was lost in his memories, only hearing the question he had asked faintly. "Oh that? I only remember a vague question that if a sissy bunny boy like me enjoyed skipping around and eating carrots too." He took a drink from the cup, smirking as a drop ran from the corner of his mouth. "Course he was right about one thing, I do love myself a good carrot," he remarked, tongue snaking out to lick up the stray drop.

"Ah! Shinichiro Tamaki... I remember now." He nodded as the face of his former classmate had come back to him. The two were in the same middle school for a while, so it wasn't like they never crossed paths. "He had it out for me until his family moved away after that." he remarked. Thinking back, it was rather impressive for a nine year old to be able to pull off a snap as bloody as Lelouch did that night. He never did ask the boy where he had learned to do that. All he could see was the blood gushing out of Shinichiro's nose and onto Lelouch's pale fingers. The younger boy would not look away as it poured out while gasps and shrieks were heard from the older teens.

Suzaku remembered acting on impulse and quickly pulling Lelouch close and leading him further into the park where the group had gathered before anyone else could think of retaliating. He doubted now that the fifteen year olds would harm the smaller child, but any of the younger teens could. The two boys ran with hands clasped tightly, the blood between both palms made the older of the two feel more frantic to not loose hold. By the time the two stopped, they were already on the other side of the lake, hidden behind the tunnel of some jungle gym.

"We stayed there all night... even with your costume not covering you decently enough from the cold. Just because of some comment about carrots?" he didn't really believe that, knowing his former classmates tended to be less creative in their taunts. That was a long time ago, so it didn't really matter now. Taking a sip of his own sake, Suzaku grimaced at the heat given off by the bottle. He didn't drink the stuff often, so feeling a hot drink instead of an ice cold bottle was different. Not something he couldn't enjoy, though.

"I liked that jacket, by the way." he chuckled before noticing the other's confused glance. "The skeleton hoodie you wiped your bloody arms all over on the inside. Don't think that was enough warmth considering Marianne giving me funny looks when you caught a cold from 'spending the night at my house'."

As Nagisa came in to deliver their meals, the detective thanked the waitress before turning away to see his closest friend eye his food in a sort of joy he hasn't seen in a while. It was good to get out of the house every once in a while. "You know..." he began before thinking on how he should go about this. He was sure he made his feelings clear, but with Lelouch pulling back with uncertainties, Suzaku wasn't sure just yet on how he was going to convince the other that there was no lie between them. "If you could really go for it, I'm sure we can find a place for you to get your carrot." green eyes glanced away from the food on the table between them to keep hold on the purple eyes looking right back. Underneath the table he reached out with his left hand and placed it gently on the other's thigh. Without breaking contact, Suzaku tilted his head slightly to the side and gave a little smirk. "I'm sure, with it being your day, we can arrange for you to get whatever you want." he teased while rubbing softly through the jeans on the other's leg.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special Thanks to my best friend Ayame for helping me with this.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning, things tend to get a little more graphic as the chapters go on. Especially the upcoming few chapters!

Lelouch was already in the process of pouring himself another cup of sake as the other was talking. Looking up at the mention of a skeleton hoodie, he tried to think back to it. It was bringing back some familiarity; he remembered that though it was black it gave a distinct glaze of blood from when he tried to clean his hands. His eyes cast downward at the mention of his mother. "I don't think it was the fact that I caught a cold, she was rather upset by the idea that I had stayed out all night especially with her earlier boasting of how a well behaved boy I was..."

Taking another long drink, he did his best not to think about his family. It never brought up anything good, he had the body count to prove it. Course there was no way he was going to mention that to the lead cop on his investigation. Lelouch released a sigh, setting the cup down in time for the waitress to enter and place their food in front of them. Eyeing everything, he couldn't help the small smile that broke his stoic face. He hadn't had a meal quite like this in such a long time. Reaching out, his finger brushed against the tofu roll when the other spoke, directing his attention away from the food.

Lelouch arched an eyebrow at the beginning of the others sentence, unsure what he was getting at until the remaining words started to sink in. It only offered more clarification when he felt the others hand on his thigh and softly rubbing. His amethyst eyes widened slightly, before glancing over to the dividers. He just wanted to be sure that they were in fact closed before returning the gaze to the teasing green ones. That teasing smirk on the others lips showed this was intentional, and if that was what he wanted to play, he would step up to the plate.

"Oh is that so?" Retracting his hand from the food, he lazily placed his left arm on the table while the right rested against his leg. "If you insist on giving me such a request, there was actually a quite impressive one I saw earlier today, the person was nice enough to give me a quick show before I was pulled away for work." Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out his phone, unlocking and finding the picture to show the other. Smirking, he showed the other his newest prized picture, Suzaku spread on his work couch pleasuring himself from earlier in the day.

"It is quite impressive isn't it?" He scooted closer, making him within arms length of the others hips. "Since it is my day, I would really like to see that carrot again, it was quite big and thick," he whispered, right hand reaching over to the zipper of the others pants. His smirk widened into a grin as he took the zipper in his fingers and slowly tugged down. "I am pretty certain that it would taste absolutely delicious," he purred, slipping his finger into the opening, finger ghosting a touch to the erecting organ behind the thin boxer fabric.

Green eyes grew wide at the recognition of the other's phone. There he was pictured on the couch from earlier that day, jacking off. Feeling the heat rush to his face, the detective choked on the sake he had been sipping before the other pulled out the device. His eyes traveled from the image on the phone to the well-placed smirk on the college student's face. "When did he take that? I thought he was working..." the older man quickly thought as he held back a cough.

Meeting amethyst orbs once again, the green-eyed man allowed an awkward laugh to come out with a lazy smile. "Sir, I'll have you know that holding onto pornographic images on one's device is heavily frowned upon and even illegal in certain states." he joked before squeezing the thigh underneath his hand slightly.

As the younger man scooted closer, he felt his grip shift before noticing the tugging coming from his own pants. Glancing down towards his crotch before chancing a look back at the other, Suzaku felt his heart race a bit. It didn't slip his mind that they were still in a prestigious restaurant with a nosy waitress whom was bound to check up on them at some point. At the feel of thin fingers verging further, the other was not too proud to say that he would rather push that little information to the very back of his mind.

Moving his left hand back to his side, Suzaku grinned as he took the others grip into his own. "Well as a cook at home, who am I to deny my roommate a taste that he craves?" Moving forward, he reached out with his free hand to caress the younger man's face lightly before placing a quick kiss at the corner of his mouth.

Lelouch enjoyed the embarrassed look on the older males face. Since it had only happened a few hours ago, he found it rather humorous that the male had forgotten that in the process of him cleaning up the coffee mess, he pulled out his cell phone to snap a memorable picture of the lusty officers actions. He shrugged his shoulders at the comment to possession of pornographic images on devices. "Oh is that so? Then I'm obviously a bad boy who likes to oppose the law," he teased, an evil glint passing in his eyes. 'I oppose it more than you could possibly imagine.'

Watching the conflict of emotions running over his partners face, Lelouch couldn't help the feeling of empowerment. The risky behavior and the possible negative results if they were to get caught was enough to build adrenaline, and the adrenaline was enough to make the law abiding cop ignore all self reason.

He grinned when he felt the other grip his hand, almost pushing his hand further in. Crooking his finger to keep it from making contact with clothed flesh, he allowed the other to lean in onto him. "Oh, how kind of you to agree to my request. If I didn't know any better, I would say that you are looking forward to this craving of mine." Extending his finger, he allowed it to rest upon the clothed tip.

Leaning forward, his lips brushed against the others ear. "I bet you would like the idea of watching me savor and indulge myself in the delicious taste. I'm quite sure it would take you into the edge of ecstasy and you wouldn't want me to stop until there is nothing left~" The words left his lips in a soft purr, finger slowly rubbing up and down the length of his need.

Feeling the finger tease on his prick, Suzaku hitched in a breath before grinning and gazing back into the amethyst eyes in front of him. "Someone's getting bold for a restaurant. Of course I'm not going to stop you from eating whatever you want, but be warned we will never be able to come back again for the lovely food if that waitress comes back." he snarked before nuzzling against Lelouch's neck to lay a soft kiss between the crux.

A chill ran down his spine as he felt more pressure. Not to be detoured, the older man began to rub more inward of the college student's thigh as he pulled them closer. He could feel a light headed-ness ebb softly at his thoughts with the sudden rush of adrenaline and lust. The scent coming off of Lelouch's neck and clothes were more intoxicating that he ever noticed before. "Just promise you will always be my cottontail... Only my cottontail." he whispered before leaving a hard kiss on the underside of the other's jaw connecting to his neck.

Tilting his head to the side, he allowed the older male better access to his neck. Closing his eyes, Lelouch allowed himself to be pulled closer by the others hand on his thighs. A soft hiss escaped his lips when he felt the hard suction close to his carotid pulse. Left hand reached up to press the back of the others head closer to him, enjoying the sensation of the others lips on his neck. "Mmn, your the only one who would call me that to begin with so, yeah I can promise you that."

His finger slowly made it's way up the others erection, pausing at the tip. "So long as you promise you will only show me this lusty side of yours. So that means no more bringing strangers into the house ok," he teased, swirling his finger on the head. Earning a moan from the brunette male caused a smirk to form on his face. Lelouch felt a sudden pain in his head, causing his body to go rigid for a moment. Turning his head slightly, his eyes came into view of a small mirror that was hanging in their area, staring back was the crazed eyes of his other self displaying the wanton thirst for blood.

His hand slowly traveled from the back of the others head, stopping when his middle and thumb were slowly resting on the pressure points below the older males ear. 'It will be so easy to end it right now! Everyone else who may be potential witnesses may have to die also but why not take a risk?' Before pressure could be applied, he heard the faint sound of footsteps stopping at the other end of the divider. It was enough to give him back his control, releasing a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. Purple eyes narrowed on the divider for a moment, knowing that it was probably Nagisa coming to check on them. He could see that the divider had been moved slightly, enough for her to peer through without being noticed, or so she thought.

The smirk returned to his lips, left hand sliding away from the male's neck pressure points. "Mmm, tell me Suzaku, how do you feel in this situation? You're marking my neck with such ferocity that I want to know what's running through that head of yours. Tell me every thing you are thinking of doing with me," he purred, knowing all to well they were being listened on.

Grinning into the attention he was delivering to the other's throat the detective would roll his eyes at that remark if he wasn't so distracted. "Smartass is enjoying this." he thought before pulling away to look at what the other was doing. Thinking about that embarrassing situation he found himself in a few weeks ago, Suzaku thought better than to mention that it wasn't his fault. Being intoxicated was no real excuse, but at least it was better than to willingly let a stranger into the apartment.

"It's a deal, but can we please just drop that for a moment? It's not like Gino will let me forget, the prick." he grumbled while bringing the younger man closer that Lelouch was almost on his lap. Enjoying the feel of the hands on both his head and below, he allowed himself to sigh in some release. Doubts of this possibly being real were brought up slightly before being banished to the back of his mind.

Leaving another nip of the neck before trailing up to give attention to under the brunette's jaw onwards. As he reached the left ear he allowed himself to give in to curiosity. "Lelouch... shall we make this official or..?" he never wanted to finish that question, so opted to leaving small kisses the skin.

"Well we can't very well go far unless there is a way to lock that paper door." he chuckled before going back to mark the other's skin on the corners of his mouth and teasing Lelouch with whispers of how lovely he was. Never once did he notice the door behind them, nor the glint in the other's eye. Well into enjoying the moment, the older man brought his hand up to rub at the shoulders and through the hair of his roommate.

Lelouch's purple eyes stared down at the older male, enjoying the view of the normally composed Suzaku giving into temptation. It was even more thrilling knowing they were being watched by the waitress, and the fact that she hadn't interrupted them yet meant either Nagisa enjoyed watching or she was too embarrassed to stop them. The hand he had intended to use to grip the others pressure points ran over the soft fabric of his shirt that covered his chest.

"Official you say?" He gave a glance at the mirror, faint view of the dark side of him, warning and disgust in the returned gaze. Tearing his eyes away, he used his hand to lift the others head to fix green eyes with his purple ones. "You should know how much of a challenge I can be as a roommate, but if you're up for the extra challenge then I don't mind crossing that line with you." Leaning forward, Lelouch placed a soft kiss on Suzaku's lips.

Once he pulled back, a smirk formed on his lips, leaning close again to whisper in the male's ear. "Just know that once we cross, you won't be able to go back. I won't be held responsible if you become addicted to me and all my poison~" Tongue snaked out, licking the shell of the detective's ear before pulling back, staring down at him with his smug smirk.

In his head, all of those sensual suggestions were enough for the detective to translate Lelouch-speech into an actual confirmation. Pulling back from his musings a bit, Suzaku felt his heart pick up in a new beat. Racing just as fast as before, but to a different tune that was not canceling out any of the lust, but complimenting it just as well. Loving the knot in his stomach tangle even further, the elder man allowed an honest and joyful smile to cross his face as he looked up lovingly into the university man's sparkling amethyst eyes.

"Well than, whatever I have been infected with, just seems to have no cure. Seems like I'll need a daily dose of you in my waking life to carry on." he teased before finally pulling Lelouch full into his lap and holding onto his waist while pressing a kiss forward. In the moment, there was no other thought besides the lover with him. Nothing mattered; not the case nor the troubles of these last few weeks.

Lelouch could help the chuckle that escaped him at the others comment on being infected by him. Settling on the others lap, he allowed himself to be pulled into another kiss. It seemed to ooze with emotion from the other, while it filled Lelouch with contempt it also seemed to seep in slivers of guilt. 'I just hope you will feel the same way should you ever find out everything I have done...' he thought to himself, slowly pulling away.

"Just make you tell me when the dosage is never enough, after all constant exposure requires you to up your intake. I should know, I work in the biological area after all." Giving a glance over his shoulder, his eyes scanned the lunch across the table before looking over at the divider that separated them from the eyes of the public. Well, except for one who was watching the whole ordeal.

Returning his attention to the older male, he leaned forward hand sliding down till it rest just above the others groin. "But then again, against my better judgement I would find it rather pleasurable to get you completely dependent on me," he whispered, hand rubbing against the growing proof of lust beneath the others jeans. Lelouch smirked when he received a moan from the other, fingers gripping the metal zipper to slowly close the opened fly. "However, we are being watched by the waitress and have been for some time so I guess we will just have to wait now won't we," he finished, placing a kiss on the others cheek before removing himself off the cop completely.

Shifting back to his original sitting position, he then proceeded to pick up a tofu spring roll. "I hope our food hasn't gone too cold, don't you agree Suzaku," he asked, smug grin on his face as he brought the roll up to take a bite out of it.

At first Suzaku wasn't sure what he heard was right. Looking into the gleam of the younger man's eyes, he knew that smirk anywhere. The gut tightening feeling that had been relatively pleasant went as cold as ice in a matter of minutes. His eyes widened a bit as they watched Lelouch recline back into his own seat and take a bite out of the forgotten lunch. His heart seemed to stop as a chill went down his spine and he felt both pale and flushed at the same time.

Looking towards where the dividers were located, he noticed for the first time how there was an actual parting in the middle. The waitress was clearly visible and seemed to have realized she was caught in the act as well as she precariously opened the doorway fully into the private section. Nagisa uttered some words that were pure nonsense to the detective, but at the moment everything was gibberish to him. It might have been an apology for intruding on their indecent acts, or a reprimand for performing such things in the first place. He wasn't one to clarify as he chose to ignore her entirely and play with whatever was on his plate at the moment. Much to Lelouch's delight at his embarrassment, Suzaku could only wonder how long he knew she was there.

After she left rather awkwardly, things returned forcefully to a more sensible topic of discussion for the remainder of the meal. Admittedly never wanting to go through such troubles again, the older man was relieved by the end to laugh off the experience. That was until they went up to the counter to pay for the bill and his new lover could not keep neither his hands to himself nor his mouth shut in front of the lass.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special Thanks to my best friend Ayame for helping me with this.


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning, things tend to get a little more graphic as the chapters go on... especially this one.

Clearing the parking lot, Suzaku took the time to admire how relaxed his friend now seemed to be. Thinking back to the troubles of their past, and knowing how well mannered adults they have grown up to be, the older man couldn't help the smile on his face as they pulled up on the ramp to the expressway. "The whole time we spent as children never hinted to a night like this, did it?" he wondered out loud randomly as Lelouch was browsing through the radio stations. "I mean knowing we would spend our lives together from now on... makes me glad for Tamaki's broken nose that night. Wouldn't change it for the world." he joked. As they neared their exit, he recognized the song that had started up to be something from Maroon 5, but couldn't place a finger on the name.

Lelouch had been staring out into the passing traffic before turning his attention over to Suzaku. "In truth, I never really knew what to expect. There were times all I could do was hope that I would grow up still good friends with you, especially after being separated not long after high school. After all we only saw each other one year after our departure in elementary school." His gaze drifted to the radio when a familiar song started playing. These were things he heard often at the lab, they always had the radio on there and he subjected himself to it before locking himself in his space with his own music.

"Oh? So that night was a highlight on your feelings for me? Were you scamming on my ass like the others were," he teased, his familiar smug grin on his face. When they pulled into the parking garage, Lelouch unbuckled himself allowing himself to stretch but not moving to get out of the vehicle just yet. "I've actually ran into some of your former classmates prior, all have said I look 'different', I'm guessing in the sense that I don't have the girlish look. They even made an effort to try to get my number though I never gave it to them, none were really friends of mine so I saw no reason to keep in touch."

Shifting in the seat, Lelouch stared over at the older male. "You hung out with some strange people. Then again, I'm rather strange myself, wouldn't you say?" Running his fingers through his black hair, he released a sigh before reaching for the handle. "We should head inside, I want to stretch out on the couch after being confined to a cramped sitting position for quite a while," he teased, voice hinting at the position they'd been in at the restaurant.

"I wish I could say so, but at the time I wasn't thinking too hard on my sexuality and was only interested in trying to steal a cigarette from the older kids." the detective admitted. He may not be too proud to admit his life was more of a cliché from the 50s than being his own person, but growing up isn't that easy. Thinking on it made the older man give a glance to his younger friend. Knowing full well how hard Lelouch must of had it only brought a frown to his face, but he didn't want to bring up any bad memories after trying to cheer the college student up. "You strange? That's non-sense; at least you didn't try to fit it with people who weren't that great."

As they reached their apartment block, Suzaku drove up the ramp to the parking garage higher level. Around this time of night, there wasn't going to be anything on the lower levels available, but that didn't really bother him since their rooms were on the fourth floor anyways. Locking the car and pacing to the elevator, Suzaku chanced reaching out to take the other's hand. "So how are you feeling now?" he asked with underlined concern. The ride up was spent in comfortable silence that any music would have disrupted if the manager had been inclined to include it in the mechanics. Unlocking the door to the living quarters, the detective allowed his lover to enter first before closing up behind them.

Lelouch glanced over at the others comment about him not being strange. He couldn't help the smile that formed on his lips for a moment before he wiped it away. While he was his own 'person' now, his past was made up of being what was expected of him. A reflective glance of his current appearance caused him to think of how different he was from his past self. Longer hair that was usually unkempt in opposite of his child-like short cut he used to have, leaner than what his father would have preferred, and his face a bit more feminine that would have driven his mother and sister into jealous fits due to their conceited views.

The feel of Suzaku's hand on his brought his thoughts back to the present, allowing himself to be pulled into the elevator. "I'm feeling...normal." He knew his response would sound a little odd, but in truth, other than Zero rearing his head in opposition to their newly formed relationship, there had been no other outburst. Lelouch went as far as to call it a blessing for now, fearing the worst outcome. Entering the apartment, he proceeded to kick off his shoes at the doorway and continued on in his socks.

For some odd reason, he really enjoyed being back in the private space of their place. It had a calming effect on him, opposite of the dread he used to feel when he had to return to his family home. His content feeling was short lived when he felt the familiar pang of pain in his head. Time for some medicine. Moving into the kitchen, he reached into the medicine cabinet to pull out his prescription. "Thanks for spending the day with me. I'm sure things got strained over at the station," he called before popping the pills into his mouth and following through with water.

Noticing Lelouch's direct path to the kitchen did strike Suzaku as odd, until he remembered the other's pension for main medication. Although he knew nothing on what the pills were meant for and had promised not to question them in the past, didn't change the fact that he found them to have an addictive effect on his roommate and the cop would prefer to have the other off them completely. "Another headache?" he asked casually, trying not to show his disapproval. He followed into the kitchen and watched as the college student downed the pills in one go.

Turning away from the sight he opened the fridge to see if they still had that wine from dinner several nights back. He had originally bought it just for cooking, but seeing as how they already had a fantastic meal and the bottle was open it would just go to waste in the fridge and most likely turn to vinegar before the older man felt like cooking again. "This cost me quite a bit, so how about we enjoy another glass?" he reasoned as he pulled out the white wine and closed the door before showing off the glass in his hand to the other. Placing the bottle on the counter for a moment, the brunette reached his hand in the cupboard for the stem glasses he liked to save on hand for company.

Beckoning the young man to follow, Suzaku placed everything on the living room table before opening the bottle once again and pouring one for each of them. "The day isn't over yet, and we have plenty of time before I have to turn on any devices yet." he teased before handing the glass to Lelouch and sitting on the couch languidly and taking a sip.

The younger male didn't respond just yet to the others question about headaches, the bitter taste of the pill still lingering on his tongue. Lelouch knew it was only a matter of time before the older male would question why he took them so frequently over the years. In the past, their schedules always led them to pass each other frequently that it was never as obvious as it was now. "You could say that, they seem to be happening more often now," he replied after a while. Closing the pill bottle, he placed it back in the medicine cabinet.

Tilting his head to the side when the older male commented about drinking the wine, giving him a slight smile. "Sure, that way you don't complain about it going to waste." Moving away from the counter, he followed the older male into the living room, sitting beside his lover. Fingers lazily gripped the stem of the glass that the detetive handed him, staring down at the liquid. 'I wonder if the effects will be voided if I mixed alcohol with the medication like I'm warned not to...' Deciding to disregard it, he lifted it to his lips and took a sip.

Purple eyes moved from the glass to the brunette, glass moving away from his lips. "I figured you had time until you were called in regarding the case. I'm actually quite surprised they haven't contacted you at all. It has been rather nice to have you around and not dragging your tired on the verge of death body through the door to collapse on your bed to sleep." Lelouch shifted his body to face the green-eyed male. "It looks like it is really working you hard, I just hope you are careful."

The day had been rather pleasant. So much, in fact, that the detective had momentarily forgotten that there was a serial killer out on the streets this very second. Some poor soul could be lured to an unfavorable death with no one to help. Looking towards the back of the apartment, Suzaku could only imagine the cityscape beyond the wall. If he checked in with Gino right now perhaps-

Before his thoughts could continue in their track, the detective looked back to his side as his roommate sat down next to him. "No... not just roommate." he thought as a deep breath was taken. Jumping off his police investigator mode before it ruined any more moments with worry, the older man studied the other as the bottle of wine was shared between them. It wasn't a bad flavor, but if given the choice of any other color, white wine wasn't something he looked forward to drinking alone. He was glad to share this moment not only in food but in time between them. The taste was crisp with hints of bitters at the end. It reminded the cop of that kiss shared not to long ago during a very nice Vietnamese meal. "He's not just my friend anymore, he's my partner in more ways than one." Suzaku raised his arm to lean across the back of Lelouch's shoulder while inching forward to place a light kiss on his cheek.

"Yeah well, the way I see it, the Chief owes me this day off to start with. Gino can handle any new leads without me for a while so there is no real problem there." he answered as confident as he was in his name. "Besides I turned off my pager in favor of today. As I said earlier, there is nothing I would ever deny of you." the detective confessed before taking another swig of the wine in hand.

Giving the other a glance, Suzaku wondered if he was being too forward. He didn't want to seem too pushy after the events of the other night, yet there was a rhythm in his chest that refused to back down. After agreeing to make their relationship something more lasting, he was certain that any move he made would only be meet with approval from Lelouch at this point. There was only so much teasing a lover could get away with before his endurance broke and he was willing to take a risk. Placing the near empty wine glass down on the small table in front of them, Suzaku reached out his other hand to take the glass away from his young partner in order to prevent any spillage.

Ignoring the questioning look he earned, Suzaku reached up to cup the other's face and held it there aa he leaned closer. "You know, before we were interrupted by a curious waitress, I do believe you were about to administer another dose. Now it seems to be too late and I'm far deep in my withdrawals." he teased before allowing a smirk to show. Bringing their lips together, the older man kept his gaze unlocked with the others. He enjoyed the sounds made at the back of Lelouch's throat and decided to push a little further. Using his unoccupied hand, he snaked it between the couch and the younger man's back before settling on the curve of a spine. As Lelouch's shivered at the feel of fingers over his nerves, Suzaku used the distraction to pull the other to rest fully in his lap. "My cottontail. " Suzaku grinned before grinding up against the other settled on his legs.

Lelouch's mind was in a roller coaster of emotions, a small sense of fear that he was crossing a boundary that could never be undone if they continued and decided that it wasn't what they wanted or liked, a huge amount of repressed sexual desire that he had hidden away due to his aggressive side, and then there was his other self who was spewing different profane words that he could think of. It was an understatement that Zero didn't like the position they were in, not only could it compromise everything that had been done so far but it could hinder any future activity.

A groan left Lelouch as shivers ran up his spine, his senses heightened at the touch of the other's hand as well as the grinding of his hips against him. "I could express to you countless times how much I detest that name, but then again, only you could get away with calling me that." Lelouch returned the others grin, hands undoing the buttons of Suzaku's shirt as he leaned forward, lips ghosting a touch. "If you feel so desperate for another dosage, I would be happy to oblige as well as offer so much more that you may just overdose," he whispered against Suzaku, soft skin teasing brief moments of contact with each other.

It wasn't until Lelouch was done unbuttoning the others shirt that he actually indulged the other with another heated kiss, hands sliding down the others arms to push the fabric off. Despite the increase of anger in Zero's voice, Lelouch made the decision that he was going to take the risk. There was only so much repression he could allow himself to endure before the need for carnal pleasure took over. Pulling away for a moment, he took the opportunity to slide the older male to the side till his back was resting on the sofa and he sat atop of him.

Lelouch caught the look of surprise come across Suzaku's green eyes and he almost felt himself loose his composure. It felt as thought Zero was digging his nails into his very core, trying to drag himself out but he wouldn't allow it. 'Let me have my fun damn it!' The battle seemed to flash through his eyes before he was in control once again, Zero seeming to have given up and disappearing to the back of his conscious. "I think we have both been pretty pent up from work and stress, so let's just tune out of this world for a while." His grin turned into a smirk, his hands sliding up from his waist, taking his shirt with him till it slipped off from his head and he tossed it aside.

Suzaku felt as his shirt began to be unbuttoned. There were hands at his chest, roaming his waist, and then to his thighs. The kiss was hungry and awfully violent. The detective tried his best to keep up, to attain some sort of control. Suzaku slipped expertly into the younger man's mouth, devouring what he could without much patience as he traced every hidden seam of wet skin that Lelouch hadn't the strength to even attempt to keep from him. The older man pulled away with a muffled pop before he lent down to ravage Lelouch's neck again, biting sharply all along the pulse of the jugular vein. Lelouch was a drug. A sedative. A powerful and beautiful morphine with soft curls and empathetic violet eyes. And like a drug, Lelouch was nothing short to addictive and oh so hellishly lethal. That's when Suzaku really started digging into his neck, all teeth and tongue and no care at all given for any broken skin.

"Fuck, I want you so bad." Suzaku let out as his hands traced the outlines of the other's jeans. Pulling the other closer he unzipped the front and tucked. He smirked at a sort of low, sensuous growl Lelouch let out in response. A burst of cold air hit the college boy's legs, followed by him kicking out of his socks and shoes without hardly remembering his own heist. Suzaku couldn't retain the slight moan at the sight before him. It simply wouldn't have been human if he had. Lelouch rested in only his thin boxers on the detective's lap, long legs bending on either side of him. Noticing the slight bruise, sparked in the older man's mind, but he chose to deal with that later. There was no point in spoiling this tension between them when it was very clear what they wanted. The report could be made later, since a rape kit won't be needed.

Panting quietly despite himself, Lelouch's eyes began to glaze over with what appeared to be lust, dulling greatly in their brilliant color. His brow knit upward, face carded red. His mind reeled, his skin too hot. Suzaku could feel the full weight of his cock shamelessly press against his thigh, and was almost assured that Lelouch could feel it just as distinctly. His dick lied frantic in its painful confines, leaking now from in between his quivering legs.

Suzaku had moved back up to Lelouch's lips and took it upon himself to prolong the kiss for a longer while, audibly swallowing whenever the kiss seemed to have overwhelmed him the most. Feeling emboldened by Lelouch's silent approval and amusements, he slipped both hands beneath the last article of clothing keeping the younger man decent. The air was all but knocked out of Lelouch's lungs the moment Suzaku's hands had traveled back towards his ass, clenching hard and possessively. He felt the very tips of Suzaku's fingers give the occasional brush against his hole, teasing it. Lelouch's cock jumped at the feeling, eager for more. While one hand stayed firm in its area of harassment, the other slides to grip hold at the college student's crotch. Suzaku's thumb grazed against the slit of Lelouch's dick, squeezing a little harder along the thick length of Lelouch's sodden cock. He pumped softly at first, spreading the pre-cum leaking from the head in circular patterns to provide some friction while simultaneously covering the rest of the shaft in a wet coating. He built up the tempo ever so slowly, resisting the urge to forego any foreplay. He swallowed every moan that came from the other's mouth as his hands squeezed harder.

Suzaku never allowed Lelouch to look away from him as their eyes stayed interlocked. Instead, Suzaku stared Lelouch straight into his violet eyes, quietly watching as he caressed the only man who had ever managed to seduce him to such vicious and intimate levels. Using his other free hand to slide Lelouch's boxers right off his ankles.

Words could not describe how much Lelouch was enjoying the sensations he was feeling with the other male. It had been so long since he'd allowed himself to really give in to the touch of another person without being disgusted by past memories. What had started out as him taking initiative was quickly flipped and he soon found himelf breathless, panting and completely powerless against the older male.

A soft sigh left him at the feel of lips to his neck before a gasp was wrenched from him, eyes shooting open at the feel of teeth. At first it seemed like alarms were going off in his head, momentary fear of Zero breaking free but the unthinkable happened...he was purring at the sensations. Momentary pain from skin breaking caused him to cry out but it was laced with dark pleasure.

Lelouch smirked at the older male's remark, shudders running through his spine at the sound of need in his voice. "Is that so?" It was a first to see the composed detective lose reason, this was a thrilling sensation that made him painfully erect and it seemed to have the same effect on the older male. The feel of the detective's hardened cock brushing against his leg through the confines of his pants nearly made him lose his own composure. Goosebumps ran over his skin, every touch from the other was like cool release against his heated skin, muscles tensing as Suzaku's hands slipped into the confines of his last piece of clothing. Nails dug into the cushions at the feel of fingers threatening to penetrate, never having someone actually enter before.

"Fuck..." The word left his lips in a whisper, his body trembling in anticipation, his eyes were locked on the others piercing green ones, they seemed to test him limits and see how much he was willing to give him. Lelouch was being reduced to a quivering mess under this man. His mouth hung open in abandon as moans left him with each stroke made over his cock, the feel of pre-cum leaking onto the detective's fingers.

His cheeks flushed with every pass over his slit, moans increasing in tempo till his mouth was captured by the older male. With his only free hand, Lelouch brought it up to the others face to deepen the kiss, feeding whimpers of need into the others wet cavern. Wanting more, his tongue slipped inside the others mouth, shivering at sensitivity he was feeling run from his mouth to his spine, only pulling away when he was in desperate need for air.

He was used to being looked at with desire but the others gaze on him made him feel weak, needy and hot. At the feel of the cool apartment air against absolute bare skin, he retrieved the hand used for the fabrics removal and traced it against his soft skin. "Touch me more...make me go crazy," he pleaded, as he ran the others rough hand over his chest. It was thrilling to see the flicker of emotions in the others green stare, a battle of rationality versus feral desire to mark, to dominate, and lose themselves in violent nirvana. "Suzaku...make me yours," he whispered, releasing his hold on the others arm to lean up and capture his new found lover's lips in a heated kiss, gyrating bare hips at the others clothed ones, moans leaving him in a pleasure laced pleas.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special Thanks to my best friend Ayame for helping me with this.


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Warning, things tend to get a little more graphic as the chapters go on..... especially this one.

The sensation of the younger man on him was almost too much to resist. Knowing how much his young lover wanted him to take charge emboldened the detective with an idea. "So how about that carrot you wanted at dinner, Cottontail?" the detective teased. Suzaku had pulled the younger man to his feet by the shoulders. Lelouch stood there, naked and looking slightly perplexed. Suzaku looked him up and down several times, his tongue quietly marking his lips. His lover looked good enough to eat.

"If you want to be fully mine, you'll do as I say right?" Lelouch, with much amusement at quickly understanding what was hinted at, pushed the older man to sit back on the couch, got on his knees and took the other's cock from out of its confines. The raven haired man hadn't noticed the moment he'd licked his lips. He brought his lips to the tip, and licked, tasted, before taking what he could into his mouth. Suzaku didn't say or do anything; he didn't want to rush the other at first knowing this had to be something the college student was comfortable with. Suzaku reclined his head, brought his arms to the brace of his sofa, and quietly watched Lelouch from beneath the veil of his lashes. He smiled, amusement bedded into the dangerous sharpness of his eyes. It felt nice.

Lelouch knew he wouldn't last much longer like this, on his knees, with the detective's prick so perfectly cradled into his throat like it belonged there. Suzaku's mind grew fuzzy as the feeling of being inside the hot mouth. He groaned as the twenty year old teased with grazing of teeth. Without prior warning, Suzaku moved his hands to hold onto soft locks before forcing his cock deeper and Lelouch's head to go into a quick and steady rhythm; the entirety of his cock sliding softly and audibly against the slick walls of Lelouch's throat. The college boy clenched his eyes shut, gagged, choked, and attempted to pull away. Suzaku kept him in place by the root of his hair. "I know you can take more; you teased all day about it. Don't hold back, Lelouch." He reasoned as calmly as he could while maintaining firmness in his voice. Lelouch nodded. Suzaku pushed his cock in, slowly, until the tip of Lelouch's nose had met with the clothed planar of his pelvis. Lelouch froze still as a stone, willing his gag reflex at bay. His own cock trembled in need.

"Look at me, beautiful." And so Lelouch did, boldly, and with his eyes shining at the rims. Suzaku's delight only increased with the sight of Lelouch secretly reaching down between his thighs, surely taking himself in hand. Suzaku shivered in arousal as he had much earlier that day. "Yes. Like that. Don't stop, Lelouch." It always felt nice, knowing nothing and no one could ever not submit to you; not even someone as fiery and as brilliant like Lelouch. Suzaku basked in the knowledge, taking much pleasure in the way Lelouch's thin, articulate lips lied worked and sealed from around the breadth of his cock working hard, oh so hard, to please him. Nothing could ever even come close. "You look better this way, Cottontail." Suzaku smirked, twirling his fingers into the black strands of the other's hair. "Perhaps you should consider it more often."

"Ugh...what have I told you about-" Lelouch's sentence was cut short when he was pulled up with the older male to stand in front of him. The male's intentions became clear with his not too subtle line, causing him to arch a knowing eyebrow and push the male back onto the couch. He was never one to beat around the bush, knowing all to well how it would go especially with his given escapades on seducing his victims before disposing of them. He couldn't keep the surprise from showing on his eyes when he released the others cock from its confines; it sprung up to meet at the level with his lips.

Lelouch gave a slight gulp, his mouth salivating a lot quicker than he had expected of himself before leaning forward, slowly licking and sucking at the tip before feeding it into his mouth as best he could. There was something very different about all the other times he'd performed this for others and what was happening now, it seemed hotter, more erotic and was making him lose his sense of reason. Lelouch could feel Suzaku's eyes on him despite him keeping his head tilted forward to focus on what he was doing.

Slowly but surely he was feeding his length more and more into his mouth, normally not lasting this long before the actions had been put to an end by a hungry blade. The very thought was enough to spark a dark need inside him, causing his teeth to graze against the sensitive flesh. Reeling it back in before he gave into the urge to bite, Lelouch was about to pull away when the detectives fingers curled into his hair and shoved him forward. "Ngh!" The instant urge to gag made him shift to recoil but the hold on his hair was too strong that it hurt more to pull away than be forced forward.

At the sound of Suzaku's demand, all the younger male could do was nod, tears brimming the edges of his eyes as he did his best to relax his throat and take him deeper. Steadying his breath, he swallowed enough saliva that was making it difficult for him to continue without gagging. It was more bearable, coming to a halt when he reached the base of the detective. The smell of musk tickled his nose, causing feeling of hot need to shoot down his spine and radiate in his own cock. God he wanted to touch himself, wanted to cum with the feel of the other in his mouth.

His purple eyes shot up at the command, a defiant glare behind the slight tear soaked ring threatening to run down his face. Though despite the slight anger of the others treatment of his throat, it didn't last long as he saw the pleasure washing over the dominating male staring down at him. Lelouch didn't think twice, hand reaching down to pump himself, the need growing too much to bear. He wanted nothing more than to cum, seeing the other aroused face reach its peak knowing that he had done this to him. Bobbing his head, he could feel the relaxing of his throat, making it easier for him to continue on without the urge to retch.

The glare returned to his gaze, again with that name. He could feel his lips twitch at the motion of a smirk but it was occupied. Pulling his head against the others grip was painful, his fingers tugging harshly at his hair but it was well worth it to trail his tongue up to the tip of the others cock before lowering it back into his mouth. With the earlier rough treatment it was so much easier for him to take him to the base, sucking on him with each inch before withdrawing again to pass his tongue over the slit and swallow him back up. Lelouch kept his gaze locked on the emerald stare, stroking himself fervently at each flicker of pleasure that was passing over his uncomposed face.

That tongue drove the detective crazy at the sensations. The way it teased him with great clarity made the older man's hands loosen on his head. He had to steal his breath to try to maintain control over his impulses to fuck the college student's mouth so thoroughly. Violet eyes shining with pent up emotions nearly broke the detective's heart. For far to long did he witness Lelouch keep those emotions locked away. If it weren't for those eyes, Suzaku might have just lost himself in that talented mouth. Before he could reach the edge and fill the other, he placed one hand firmly on the other's shoulder and pushed softly. "Very good, Lelouch... but let's not get in over our heads just yet." he almost didn't want to stop, but first there were things to be done.

Pulling out of the younger man's mouth, his eyes followed that thin strand of saliva that connected Lelouch's tongue to the head of his cock. He ignored the looks of confusion as he stood up from his chair and brought the other to his feet. Bringing their lips together, he enjoyed having his own taste defined in the other's throat. After that kiss had ended he sealed it with two softer ones on those swollen lips before leaning closer to his lover's ear. "Let's take this further in the bedroom..." After asking which bed the other preferred, he lifted Lelouch into his arms before carrying him over to the open bedroom door and depositing him carefully onto the bed. "My Cottontail." he whispered between kisses as he crawled on top of the other. "My beautiful one and only Cottontail."

Lelouch quivered in all of his need as Suzaku reached down below, beneath Lelouch's painfully erected cock and under his balls, caressing the sealed hole that lied safely hidden from beneath the mounds of his ass Suzaku watched him silently as he began to push into Lelouch with two of his fingers, breaching him inch by inch with nothing but the slight aid of pre-cum that had streamed down from Lelouch's weeping prick. Lelouch released a breath he hadn't known he'd been keeping in. Hesitant at first, he brought his arms to wrap around Suzaku's neck, holding on for dear life.

Long, graceful fingers that scissored and twisted from far within him, stretching mercilessly, skilled and experienced. Lelouch bit his lip hard to hold back all of the shameless mewls that caked the inside of his throat, cutting it. A thin string of blood fell to etch slowly against the prominent sinew of his jaw, painting it red. Suzaku watched it all in a morbid fascination. Leant in, and licked. Eventually, Suzaku's slow ministrations ceased. He reached for Lelouch's leg in order to hook it against his shoulder, placing himself flush against the parted cleft of Lelouch's ass that promised so much friction. "I'm going to fuck you now, Lelouch," the detective said, stated, kicking Lelouch's thighs wide open with his knee. "Then I'm going to come inside you." Palpably trembling now in the sheer weight of his own arousal, Suzaku brushed his lips against Lelouch's own, Suzaku began to push in, fucking Lelouch open with the heavy girth of his cock. And when he is utterly full and trembling all over his skin, and is so bitterly stretched that even the angle of his own straining cock is affected, he allowed himself the space of a breath to realize that he was being fucked by the one person he so trusted and just as equally admired. That the cock throbbing and sliding in and out of his gut is Suzaku's. Suzaku never stopped fucking him senseless. Lelouch couldn't do much but rock into the breadth of Suzaku's cock, the final height of his climax beginning to sore white-hot from within his pelvis. But then Suzaku shudders and tenses all over and Lelouch is certain that he will feel the flood of Suzaku's seed soil him at any moment.

Before Lelouch could have the opportunity to catch his breath and possibly convulse and die in the torrid twine of his own belated orgasm, however, Suzaku had purposefully hit a spot somewhere inside him with the very tip of his cock that left Lelouch's mouth shooting wide open in shock. Five different times. Lelouch's load shot almost instantly, soiling both his chest and Suzaku's. The muscles in his rectum tightened, and with the amount of pressure they emitted onto the sensitive pole of Suzaku's cock, the detective came soon after as well with a low accented breath that came out sounding a lot like, Lelouch. They remained in that way for a long while, senses setting and with their bodies still connected. They could only stare at one another, fighting for breath with a mutual worship in both their eyes that never waned. They kissed into the silence, saying nothing. No need for words. The feeling, whatever it was, whatever it might have possibly been, was undoubtedly, Mutual

Never in all his life had the college male been so focused on pleasuring another person, only ever really focusing on fulfilling his own lust for carnage. Engrossed in his actions, Lelouch could hardly do anything but rely on touch and taste. The texture of the others cock in his mouth, caressed by his salivated muscular organ sent spark of electricity straight to his loins where he pleasured himself with quick strokes. The taste in his mouth was almost earthy, the familiar taste of flesh shrouded in the detectives natural musk followed by droplets of bitter liquid. Though it was not to his taste, he couldn't keep the thought or excitement of having his mouth filled by it, coating his throat in thick cum.

The image was shattered when Lelouch was pushed back, having his meal taken from his mouth with only a thin trail of saliva to follow before that too was broken. There was a small payoff when his lips were met in a needy kiss, feeling the detectives tongue explore his mouth almost as if he was tasting what he had, shivers running down his back at the thought. The question asked of him was responded with an answer that he could hardly remember if it was even coherent, but it resulted in him being lifted and carried over into a bedroom, sprawled on his back to gaze up at the male whom he would be at the mercy of.

Too enraptured by the older male's actions, he decided to turn a blind eye to the constant use of his unfavored name. Head tilted back slightly, Lelouch was doing his best to brace the pain of fingers penetrating his virgin entrance. Trembling beneath the detective, all he was able to do was cling to him and bite his lip, mixture of pain and pleasure building in intensity that it caused his teeth to cut into the delicate flesh of his lips. Another violent shudder coursed through his spine at the feel of Suzaku's tongue lapping up the blood. It earned a lustful purr from his other side, the sound ringing in his ears before it was reciprocated in his own throat.

The withdrawal of thin appendages from his taut entrance caused a soft whimper to leave him, only for the noise to be caught in his throat when he was spread. Staring up at Suzaku, Lelouch found himself being placed in a position where he would have no control in the situation. The detective's crude words caressed his ears, earning the older male a grin but no response was given, wasn't required or even allowed to pass as he was spread open by something bigger and hotter. His teeth ground together as he braced the pain of stretched flesh, an almost tearing sensation coursing through his backside.

The pain numbed out to something far more pleasurable, similar to you receiving response to an area where blood was cut off, delicious trickles of blood and nerves being stimulated with each powerful thrust. Suzaku's eyes on him only drove him deeper into ecstasy, basking in the delectable sight of the usually composed detective indulging in carnal pleasure. It was almost as if he was seeing the repressed side that he kept locked away whenever he was faced with work, the side that hardly ever got to come out and play. Lelouch's free leg hooked around the waist of the older male, pulling him closer as he felt the pressure tickle his loins with the need for release. He craved it, wanted it to be ripped from him and to leave his body convulsing and weak.

His wish was granted when the tip of Suzaku's cock brushed against the bundle of nerves that would give him just what he was looking for. He had not been able to make any sensible words then and not now, mouth hung open in abandon as small trails of saliva trickled from the edges of his mouth. Mercilessly rocking against the other cock, he felt the pressure rip through him, warmth shooting onto his chest and relief soon following. However that feeling was short lived to the feeling of heat inside of him, a liquid heat that caused his back to arch and another series of violent shivers to course through him before his body grew accustomed to the feeling.

Lelouch panted for air, heat radiating from his body before the cool air finally seemed to sink in. He felt as though they had been veiled in steam, sweat coating their skin and pressed firmly against one another. The only thing he seemed to have the energy for at this moment was to smile and let his head fall back onto a cool pillow, taking deep long breaths of air to stabilize his equilibrium as he came off his high. Lelouch could also revel in the fact that all noise he'd previously heard in his head was now silent and he could spend the next few moments living as though it never existed.

Lelouch came with the detective's name on his lips, and that was all Suzaku needed to push him over. He felt his lover's come coating his hand as his own was spilling into the man beneath him, and Lelouch was groaning and shuddering and squeezing rhythmically around him. All he knew in those moments were the waves of intense, sweet, hot pleasure that were rocking both their bodies for far longer than any other orgasm he'd yet experienced. After what felt like an eternity, Suzaku started to come back to his senses. He tried to get his breathing under control again, but the sobs kept rattling his frame, and he was making noises he didn't entirely have control over.

He laid down beside Lelouch without disconnecting their bodies and pulled him close, hugging him. His body was heavy and relaxed, and his mind was deliciously, blessedly quiet. Phrases like extraordinary and oh my god floated through his head.

"I love you." He whispered as he pressed a kiss against Lelouch's sweaty hair. His Cottontail was breathing heavily against him and his own chest was heaving. Just a quiet three words whispered into Lelouch's chest, and not the most poetic or dramatic or profound, but some of the truest he had ever spoken. What they had done had felt like such a relief. All that tension was final absolved and the air was clear. He was overjoyed, really. He'd finally gotten the man of his dreams. It'd only taken a decade to realize who that was, but he'd done it.

Lelouch moved his hand to push at Suzaku's hip, encouraging him to pull out. The college student rolled over as soon as he was free so that he could wrap his arms around Suzaku and hold him. He let the detective cling to his chest, his body shuddering with occasional aftershocks. They lay there in silence, breathing slowly and holding each other.

"This thing we have between us... I want this, and more, and always."

He felt Lelouch nod, and let his head drop down to the older man's shoulder. Lelouch smiled. He had never expected to see Suzaku, with eyes closed and body spent, whispering sweet nothings into his chest. Except - these weren't sweet nothings. This was his friend making - as far as he could tell, through the exhaustion-slurred words - a commitment. The detective held him, comforted him, and whispered his very sincere promise that it was going to be okay. He would make sure that everything was going to be more than okay from this point forward.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special Thanks to my best friend Ayame for helping me with this.


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning, things tend to get a little more graphic as the chapters go on. Especially the upcoming few chapters!

With the steam finally settling from their copulation, Lelouch could feel his body cooling as he was coming down from his high. It almost seemed unreal for him to be laying there with his best friend, now lover. His voice was instilling a calmness he hadn't experienced in a long time; actually, he was unsure if he'd ever actually felt calm in his past. At least this calm was pure, not driven from sated blood lust or the ever-present icing numbness in his mind.

He couldn't help the smile that was forming on his lips, his face pressed against the other's chest to listen to the loud heartbeat. In normal instances it would instill desire for pain from his ever present other half, but for now everything was silent. Lelouch felt like he was his own person, almost as if Zero never actually existed. He could feel his own heartbeat race at that thought, would that be possible? Was that his potential cure?

Lifting his amethyst gaze to look up at the other, chewing on his bottom lip as he studied the detective's sated expression. Suzaku had his eyes closed, soft smile on his lips as he seemed to be drifting off to an exhausted slumber. "Suzaku...I..." His sentence was cut off by sudden banging coming from the front door. It was loud enough that it could be heard all the way to the bedroom, causing both males to jerk to attention. Lelouch sat upright, though he quickly gave a grunt of pain, nearly falling back onto the bed. "Ow, I nearly forgot..." The pain was resonating from his rear, slowly trailing upwards on his lower back.

Suzaku rested his hand on the other's shoulder, stilling him from moving any further as he sat up to go investigate. Though before he could reach the bedroom door, a voice boomed from the other side of the front door. "Suzaku! I know you're in there! I have been calling your cell and paging you!" Gino's voice could be heard loud enough, almost as if he was actually in the apartment. Both pair's of eyes widened, the detective going to look for his cell and pager while Lelouch busied with finding his clothing. He would worry about the clean up later. It was a little more difficult for him to walk than he'd originally anticipated but he would take a cool bath later on.

The banging on the front door continued with more ferocity as Lelouch limped his way out of the bedroom while Suzaku busied fixing himself up and throwing covers over the bed. The young male was fairly certain he seemed a bit disheveled but he could play that off as he had been sleeping. Noting there was nothing in need of hiding in the living, he moved the wine glasses to the counter just in case before arriving at the door. Giving a sigh, he unlocked it, pulling it open just as Gino's fist was coming down to pound on it once again. As a reflex, Lelouch's hand shot up to grip the others wrist in a harsh halt, catching the other detective off guard. "Oh Lelouch, it's you. Nice grip kid. Is Suzaku here?" The younger male gave a smile, releasing his hold on the other. "I think he was sleeping but he should be out in a bit."

Suzaku had felt nothing but bliss. There would be no uncertainty or secrets between him and his childhood friend from this point onward. What could there possibly be that could discourage this from continuing? The two were only four years apart and shared a majority of their childhood together. They may have spent some years separated, but at this point Suzaku was sure of the mutual connection they had. He held onto the other feeling a heavy cloud of uncertainty was blown away. Lelouch's heart pounded quickly between the two and he could feel his own match.

His curiosity at what the other might have said was quickly snapped away at the very abrupt banging coming from out of the room and down the hall at the front door to the shared apartment. He could hear his partner freeze in as the calm ceased and tension grow. Lelouch quickly dislodged himself from the detectives hold as the two tried to pick up any cloths that may have been within reach and clean up as much as possible. The college student limped his way back to his own room on the other side making the older man wince. "Shit, I didn't mean to hurt him!" his mind screamed as he rushed out to gather any cloths that were thrown about in the living room, before retreating back to his room again and slamming the door closed. Wiping Lelouch's cum off his chest, Suzaku quickly finished dressing all the while listening through his door.

He could hear his roommate had finished first and was letting Gino into the apartment. "Damn it, Gino! You're ruining date night." he wanted to scream. He really wanted to shout it out. But this wasn't just his secret to tell. It was Lelouch's, too. He knew how reserved about personal information the other could be, so it wouldn't be proper for the older man to spill those newly placed beans. "I'll leave it to Lelouch, if he wants to tell others. Especially a loudmouth like Gino." he muttered before combing back his bangs with his left hand. After managing to calm down a bit and gathering his breath, Suzaku opened the door to his room and walked out to where the two were still chatting near the kitchen.

"Hey, Weinberg, didn't your mom ever tell you not to bother her whenever she's off from work?" he jabbed while making his way into the kitchen to drink a cup of water. "I did call in this morning remember? Last I checked the clock hasn't even reached five." Gino ignored his partner's complaints, before reaching into the bag he had brought and pulling out the files stuffed inside.

"Look I tried to call several times, but at this point I think you got enough beauty sleep to kill the princess or however that story goes. Doesn't matter, though, you really need to look at this file!" Gino countered, before looking over to the youngest man standing in the apartment. "Hey kid, don't take this the wrong way, but can you go study or something? Confidential and all."

Suzaku put the glass back in the sink, before stopping Lelouch from leaving. "Wait a minute here! Lelouch doesn't have to go. Gino you know I'm off the clock and if it's more forensics on that piece of jacket we found on that girl than it can wait until the office tomorrow." He sighed in annoyance. This was definitely not what he promised what was going to happen tonight.

"Shut up and listen, Suzaku! We've found something on the Black Knight!" Gino argued, slamming the file onto the bar counter while stomping his foot down. He had spent all day picking up the slack for his partner, sure it was well deserved, but this is something that just came in and they needed to talk.

Lelouch was watching the interaction between the two older males, remaining fairly quiet till Gino had directed a comment to him. Eyebrow arched, wanting to say something but figured it would be best to play it light for now. Feeling Suzaku's hand on his shoulder to stop him from moving, the raven haired man merely gave a lazy shrug. "It's-" His sentence was cut off by Gino's outburst, making his blood run cold as the words processed. What were they talking about? Piece of clothing? More information? He'd disposed of everything from the last female he'd killed right? It was morphing into his brain in horror, realization exactly what they were talking about. Euphie. She was technically his last female, not the one he'd left in the subway. Euphemia was his unplanned kill, the one that hurt him the most out of everything he'd ever done up to now.

Lelouch did his best to keep a wave of dizziness from taking over, digging his nails into his palm before releasing a soft breath. "The Black Knight? You mean that serial killer that's been showing up on the news?" Amethyst eyes caught the grim look on Suzaku's face, he didn't need to confirm, the detective knew that the younger male was familiar with the small bits of information he would tell him from long days of clue hunting. If there was one thing Lelouch was good at over the years, it was how to mask his emotions. Head tilted to the side, he looked over at Gino. "The last thing I heard on the news about this person was that they'd kill some young man who worked at McDonalds. Unless I missed that news segment for that one."

He could see the two males glance at each other, not trying to affirm anything but their actions were incredibly obvious. "Can I also point out something? The walls in our apartment are 'paper thin' in a sense, if I were to sit in my room I could make out a bit of what you all might say. Also, it's going to get dark soon, I doubt being out at night with a serial killer going around eviscerating people is such a good idea." Lelouch caught the frown from Gino's face, deciding to play the trump card he was hoping he wouldn't have to use because it would only cause more issues for him. "Last time I was out alone I got involved in...something unsightly." Purple eyes caught the frown now forming on Suzaku's face, knowing it had worked.

The questioning look from Gino made Lelouch give a sigh, arm wrapping across his chest to pose a dejected look. "I had a run in with someone who wasn't so nice; it gave me a bit of a wake up call for how bad it is out there after dark." Shifting to the side, the younger male moved into the kitchen to fill a glass full of water. "I promise not to say anything, I know how confidential things work. The same concept applies for my school and what I do, so don't worry about me." Taking a pill from the usual bottle, he downed it before going to take a seat on the sofa with a book he had placed in the bookshelf nearby.

Gino's outburst caught the detective by surprise. Yes this case was very stressful on everyone in the task force, but did that really justify this little off duty visit? Weinberg seemed to think so, and that was really eating at Suzaku's brain. His partner was always trying to get him to go off duty and unwind in the past. Catching the dejected look from his roommate piled on the tension he felt crawling up from this situation. He wanted to reach out and pull Lelouch into a tight hold, but knew that would not be appreciated by anyone at this moment. As Lelouch admitted what happened to him the other night, the moment he was almost raped, made the feeling in the detective's gut clench. Lelouch should never be made to feel that uncomfortable in his skin. His frown turned into a grimace, before taking his eyes off the youngest man in the room.

"Listen, Lelouch has been through a lot and this is definitely not the time to be putting ghastly images when he's supposed to be taking it easy…" he combed his left hand through his hair, pulling his bangs out of his face in the process. Seeing his love argue his reasoning's for not wanting to leave was making the older man feel guilt at having this placed on them. From the look in Gino's eyes, he could tell the other felt that as well, but he was also twitching his nose up in that way that he does when he's made up his mind on something.

"I get that - I really do – but this is really important. I mean yeah the DNA we managed to pull from the girls nails was great and all, but this is beyond that!" Gino argued, as he looked through the file on top of the pile to place in Suzaku's empty hands. "You were gone all day and never answered your phone. Listen…" The other man looked over to where the college student was seated on the couch before pulling his partner into the kitchen. In a voice meant to be a whisper Gino pulled out a series of photos from another file he had brought with him. "We got another body."

"What?! Already?! The last one was bearly over three days ago!" Suzaku shouted as Gino tried to shush him. He looked over to where Lelouch sat with his book, fear crept into his mind at the thought of what could have happened the other night if Lelouch had crept off with someone else. Suzaku looked over the report on the newest body as his partner explained the state they found it in.

"You weren't there, so I had to do the whole crime scene thing by myself… Don't get me wrong, I didn't mind that, it's just what the forensics discovered on the body." Gino explained as the two detectives leaned on opposite counters of the kitchen. Suzaku read over each file; pieces of this puzzle were clicking together with each sentence.

"New DNA evidence… skin traces found on both of the recent bodies… The girl's fingernails and the guy's teeth…" Suzaku looked up from the files to see his partner giving him the same grave look. They both looked over to where Lelouch sat in the living room with his back to them. Suzaku didn't feel comfortable with the only logical conclusion to be made so far. "The killer has to be male… and he's seducing his victims to get them alone. It's the only way he can be getting away with this so far…"

Gino nodded in silence as he glanced at the tile on the ground. Both men felt exhausted by this news. "What do you know about the guy that attacked the kid last night?"

If there was something that partner of Suzaku's lacked, it was discretion. His tone was nowhere near low enough to be a whisper, but it was muffled enough to be unheard by the normal ear. Of course, that's where they were at a loss; Lelouch knew he was far from normal. With the book resting on his lap, he had his eyes closed, listening carefully to the words coming from both males. The dark haired man was sure to turn the pages of the book in a timely manner so they wouldn't catch on to him. He felt the skin on his neck stand at the mention of another body being discovered. Crap, he hadn't expected them to find that sexual fiend, Kewell, so early.

A soft breath left him in attempts to steady the racing anxiety coursing through him. Another turn of the page, his ears tuning in further to pick up mumbled words. New DNA? Female's fingernails? Male's teeth? It was as if ice water had been dumped onto Lelouch, body going rigid as his breath stopped. The loud pounding in his chest rang loud in his ears, digging his nails into his leg to keep from making any noise. At that moment, he could feel the darkness stirring inside, the Black Knight was awakening and it was hungry.

'Kill them! Kill them both!'

'No...they still don't know...'

'And how long before they do?'

'...I don't know...' At the sound of the question for his night attacker did his amethyst eyes open, bile rising and his hand quick to cover his mouth.

As much as he tried to suppress it, a pained groan left him, which only left him the option to stand up and head into the bathroom. Back resting against the closed door, he did his best to calm his fast beating heart before spitting into the sink. Turning on the cold water, Lelouch rinsed his mouth before splashing his face. Catching a glimpse of his reflection, he could see the dilation of his pupils almost as if the other was trying to claw its way to the surface.

'I say kill them!'

"No..." Turning away from the mirror, the college student did his best to gain his composure.

'If it weren't for your emotions we wouldn't make so many slips!'

'We just need to find a scapegoat...maybe multiples...'

The sound of knocking on the bathroom door broke his thoughts, eyes turning to the closed door. "Lelouch, everything all right in there?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." Taking soft breaths, he reached for the doorknob, opening it slightly so that way his head was visible. Suzaku stood there, a look of concern in his emerald gaze. "I think I am having a difficult time from earlier, I may need to take a shower."

The amethyst gaze lifted to see Gino staring at them, giving him a weak smile before looking back at Suzaku. "I feel something of yours 'leaking out' so I better get to cleaning," Lelouch whispered, his hand resting over his abdomen. "I will try not to be too loud for you two." With a soft wave, he closed the door, giving a sigh then proceeding to go shower.

Suzaku looked back to his partner, thinking about what to say before even attempting to explain what he knew. "Not much, just what Lelouch has been able to tell me on what happened. Seeing the damage myself, I can vouch the guy was being rough. I'm just glad he was able to get out of that situation before things got worse." Gino nodded before placing the files back into the folder. "Of course, I'm still taking him to the station in the morning to have his statement taken down."

Gino gave a curious glance back, "And why didn't you do that today?" Before the detective could come up with an excuse, they both looked into the living room to see Lelouch rush into the restroom and slam the door. Suzaku made his way around Gino to check on his roommate, giving a casual "I'll tell you later." over his shoulder before he paused at the sound of running water.

"Lelouch, everything alright in there?" he asked while lightly knocking on the door to get the younger man's attention. After a few brief words from Lelouch explaining his reasoning for wanting a shower, the older man felt a cringe of guiilt rush to him as he gave the most sincere apologetic smile he could. When Lelouch closed the door again, the detective turned back around to give Gino the attention he was sure the other would expect. Rolling his eyes at Gino's mocking smile, he walked back to the center of the living room to sit back in the lazy boy.

"Well?" Gino pressed as he took a seat at the bar stool closer to the kitchen. Suzaku combed his fingers through his loose bangs as he sighed in slight agitation. How was he supposed to explain today's events without giving too much away? He reclined the seat to the armchair before coming up with an answer.

"Lelouch wasn't feeling too well today, after all that had happened. I had only recently found out about it, so there wasn't much time to make it to the station." He watched to see the other contemplate his answer. It wasn't that far from the truth, so there shouldn't be too much to pry any holes in. His friend chose to drop the subject, before going back to the case at hand. The two talked about what they could without raising any voices to alert Lelouch. By the time they heard the water pressure turn off, a plan had been made. "I don't know if this is a good idea. We may be rushing things, considering the time." Suzaku reasoned before he noticed the look his friend was giving him. "Fine, we'll head to the station... I'll wait here until Lelouch finishes getting dressed and meet you there."

"Nonsense, we'll take my car. Save some gas and carpool. I don't mind waiting." Gino countered just as they heard the bathroom door open. "Hey kid! Feeling better?"

Lelouch wished his shower was in silence, the water was doing a splendid job of muffling the noises in the living room but it did nothing for the screaming voice in his head. 'If we don't do something those annoying people will put a stop to everything we are doing.' Lelouch chose to remain as silent as he could despite the growing intensity of Zero's harsh words. 'When things are getting tough, you are just going to keep quiet and retreat like a coward? Maybe there was no real need for me; you should have stayed that pathetic child who got beaten because all you know how to do is hide.'

"...Shut up."

'Oh so that got a reaction from you?'

"I'm thinking, jumping to conclusions won't get us anywhere."

'So we are just supposed to sit here and potentially get caught?'

"I never said that. I just know we are going to have to tread more carefully, which means stop clawing your way out when you feel like it. Otherwise I won't be able to get us out of this mess." At that it went quiet, allowing Lelouch to finish his shower in momentary peace. He needed all the concentration he could muster to be able to clean himself out, which was a whole new experience to him.

Shutting off the water, the male took his time to wipe himself down not really to eager to go out there and put up the facade; it was exhausting now that his energy had been drained physically. As he reached over to temporarily put his previous clothes to get to his room, Lelouch came to a pause, amethyst eyes moving to his reflection in the fogged mirror. Despite it being a day, the marks were still visible, a dark hue on his rather fair skin. 'Hmm, I should consider spending more time in the sun so things like this don't stand out so much.' For now though, they were going to be used to play on the sympathy card. With his rather battered look, and the fact that the other was dead, there was nothing stopping him from playing the full victim.

Running his hand over the marks, Lelouch couldn't help but smile. He'd led that man on pretty strongly, saying he'd wanted it rough, though he never expected the table to turn on him in the end. But he would spin it back in his favor, and then get to working on his scapegoat. Tying the towel around his slim waist, he opened up the bathroom door to let the steam out before exiting into the living room as well.

"Hey kid! Feeling better?" The brunette gave a smile to the male sitting on the stool, running his fingers through his hair. "Yeah, nothing a nice warm shower can't solve." Lelouch could feel the two sets of eyes on him, Gino's gaze being rather surprised at the intensity of the marks that were hidden behind previous clothing, and Suzaku's gaze was of guilt mixed with anger, knowing full well that his newfound lover was not pleased with the fact that Lelouch had been marked by someone else.

"Not a flattering look I'm sure," the brunette spoke aloud, breaking the awkward silence that had formed, causing the other two male to finally blink and sort of avert their gaze. "I suppose I should get used to people looking, after all, Suzaku was going to take me to the station in the morning. It just feels...unreal..." His sentence trailed off, arms moving up as if to hug himself in a form of comfort. "It's terrible to be faced with a reality that not everyone is out there to be lawful." Lelouch wouldn't go as far as to display crocodile tears, he'd experienced that this morning at Suzaku's rather up close and personal search of him in the bathroom. "Though I am glad that I managed to get away, I know not everyone is as fortunate..." He gestured to the files that were resting on the kitchen counter before giving a sigh.

"I should go change, please excuse me." Lelouch gave a more tepid smile before heading to his room, making sure to lock the door behind him. He'd had plenty of experience with the sympathy card, seeing it thrown at him by his mother and his sister to excuse the things they'd done to him. Having taken their teachings, he modified them to play on people's emotions with ease. Running his hand over his face, he couldn't help but grin. "Their despair is delicious..." The young man took his time to pick clothes that were loose-fitting, his pace slow in dressing to let it fester while allowing his own wave of pleasure to pass.

As soon as Lelouch closed the door to his room, Suzaku felt a hard punch to his shoulder. Cursing at the sudden impact, he turned to see the furious look in Gino's eyes. "Jesus Christ, Suzaku! Why didn't you take him to the station as soon as you saw those! This is more serious than either of you seem to be taking it. Now stop with the nonchalant attitude and get your ass in gear. The kid looks like he's been through the ringer with those scratch marks and bruises!" his partner yelled. The older man knew the other was right to scold him, but he would never admit to that and pump up that air head's ego.

The two detectives quickly gathered whatever files were laying about, before Suzaku marched his way over to knock on Lelouch's door. "Hey, if you wouldn't mind tagging along. We're planning to go to the station right now and we might as well that that statement out of the way." He explained carefully before making his way to his own room to get his wallet and house keys. Taking his issued gun out of it's safe; he made sure the safety was on before holstering it. Ever since Lelouch had arrived to live with him, he had to invest in a place to make sure his glock was secured.

Pinning his badge to the clip on his belt, Suzaku made his way back to the main room to see Gino lounging on the couch while waiting on the two of them to finish up. As soon as Lelouch exited his room, Suzaku apologized about the sudden detour in their plans. Soon enough the three were making their way down to the parking garage to find Gino's truck in a handicap zone. "Really couldn't wait, could ya?" The elder man rolled his eyes at his co-worker's antics as they all climbed in.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special Thanks to my best friend Ayame for helping me with this.


End file.
